A Seattle man has been convicted of producing child sexual abuse imagery in a case involving the direction of abuse against young children in Vietnam. Richard Stanley Manness Jr., 38, was found guilty of two federal felonies after a three-day jury trial, according to Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. The jury reached its verdict after about three hours of deliberation.
Manness faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years and up to 30 years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for November 14, 2025, before U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones.
Court records show that law enforcement officials in Vietnam rescued two young girls who had been kidnapped from the street in April 2024. Their mother reported them missing when she could not locate them. The children were taken to an Airbnb rented by Manness’s female coconspirator. Communications between Manness and his coconspirator revealed that he directed the sexual abuse of one child as young as six years old, with images sent to him over the internet. Authorities also found evidence that Manness planned to travel to Vietnam for further abuse.
Manness was arrested at a Seattle apartment following information provided by Vietnamese detectives to Homeland Security Investigations regarding the kidnapping and abuse case. He has remained in federal custody since his arrest on August 28, 2024.
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security.
Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew Hampton and Cecelia Gregson prosecuted the case.
According to the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood initiative (www.justice.gov/psc), launched in May 2006, efforts are ongoing nationwide to address child sexual exploitation and abuse through coordinated action among federal, state, and local agencies.
