SACRAMENTO – A Rio Linda man, whose arrest was previously reported by Rio Linda Online following a multi-agency sting operation, has been sentenced to more than a decade in federal prison.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Daniel J. Calabretta sentenced Kenneth Wayne Lorenz, 82, to 14 years in prison for possessing visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Eric Grant.
Background on the Case
Lorenz first came to the attention of the community in August 2024, when Rio Linda Online reported on a large-scale undercover operation that targeted online predators in the Yuba-Sutter area.
As detailed in that previous report, Lorenz was identified during a sting that initially targeted Kevin Gipson, 60, of Oroville. At the time, law enforcement authorities from Yuba City and the Sacramento Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force were communicating with Gipson, who believed he was chatting with a father willing to let others abuse his young daughter.
Sentencing Details
According to the court documents finalized this week, the undercover operation revealed disturbing details about Lorenz’s involvement. Gipson had informed an undercover officer—who had assumed the identity of the child’s father—that Lorenz would also be interested in victimizing the 8-year-old child…