Palm Bay Woman Sentenced To 30 Years For Sexually Exploiting Children

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. has sentenced Rose Beth Litzky (33, Palm Bay) to 30 years in federal prison for conspiring to sexually exploit children, sexually exploiting children, and possessing child pornography.

A federal jury had found Litzky guilty on July 29, 2019.

According to evidence presented at trial, between 2014 and 2016, Litzky conspired with her boyfriend, Roberto Oquendo, to sexually exploit two young children in her custody and care. Litzky, who lived in Florida, caused the children to engage in sexually explicit conduct while Oquendo watched using a video and messaging app from his residence in Virginia. Oquendo created hundreds of screenshots of the explicit visual depictions and transported them to Brevard County, where law enforcement found them on his cell phone. 

During an interview with law enforcement officers, Litzky also admitted to producing hundreds of sexually explicit pictures of the children and texting them to Oquendo for his sexual gratification. Law enforcement searched Litzky’s phone and found a sexually explicit image of one of the children, who was two years old at the time the picture was taken.

On August 26, 2019, U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. sentenced Oquendo to 50 years in federal prison for his role in the offenses.

“Child pornography is a despicable crime so I commend the efforts of the agents and federal prosecutors who are relentless in their work to ensure children are protected from these sexual predators,” said Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Tampa Division Michael McPherson.

“I am so very proud of these agents who are devoted to protecting children by making sure the evil men and women who hurt them are brought to justice,” stated Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey. “These cases are an example of how cooperation between agencies keeps our children safe. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for prosecuting these cases and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for all of their support in fighting the exploitation of children.”

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ilianys River Miranda and Karen L. Gable.

This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.