Cedar Rapids man gets 3 years’ probation for soliciting teen

CEDAR RAPIDS — A judge has sentenced a Cedar Rapids man who solicited a girl he thought was 15 to three years of probation — instead of a possible five years in prison — for the felony.

Kenneth Merle Ruby, 44, originally charged with sexual exploitation of a minor-cause to engage in act, pleaded to enticing a minor under the age of 16.

Ruby contacted a spoof profile set up in June by Cedar Rapids police. Authorities were posing on dating apps and websites as being underage, and waited for individuals to interact with the sting account. Ruby contacted what he thought was a 15-year-old and asked her to send him naked photos of herself, according to a criminal complaint

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There were eight men, including Ruby, initially charged in the June sting operation. But that grew to about 18 charged as the investigation continued throughout the year, Linn County Attorney Nick Maybanks previously said.

The enticement charge carries a penalty of up to five years in prison, which Assistant Linn County Attorney Ryan Decker recommended. However, 6th Judicial District Judge Christopher Bruns suspended the sentence and gave Ruby three years of supervised probation, which Ruby’s lawyer requested. Ruby will remain in jail pending bed space becoming available in a residential facility.

Ruby also was charged in a separate case for violating the sex offender registry. Investigators involved in the sting operation discovered Ruby had been convicted as a sex offender in Las Vegas and had violated the registry requirements when he moved to Cedar Rapids without reporting it.

Ruby, as part of Iowa conviction, must also comply with all requirements of the sex offender registry.

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