News

42-year-old man sentenced on sexual exploitation charges

By Lightning Reports, Published: October 12, 2021

A Superior Court judge on Monday sentenced a 42-year-old Hendersonville man to up to 19 years in prison on 24 counts of third-degree felonious sexual exploitation of a minor, District Attorney R. Andrew Murray announced.

Emergency Superior Court Judge Mark Powell handed down the sentence of eight to 19 years after Patrick Ryan McFarland pleaded guilty to the charges. 

According to court records and Monday’s sentencing hearing, on Sept. 24, 2020, the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office received a Cybertip form the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children via the NC State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) that photos and videos on a specific Tumblr account appeared to be child pornography.

The SBI filed an administrative subpoena to AT&T Internet Services to determine the subscriber of the specific IP Address. Based on the information received, the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office was able to determine that the defendant, McFarland, was associated with the suspect IP Address. The Tumblr account was then preserved via court order and warrants for the defendant’s phone were obtained. A forensic investigation of the defendant’s phone and SD card revealed numerous pornographic depictions and videos of young female girls between the ages of 3 and 13. The defendant was indicted on 24 counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor. McFarland pleaded guilty to all 24 counts. Judge Powell consolidated the defendant’s 24 counts into 12 counts for sentencing purposes.

During the latest September Administrative Session of Superior Court in Hendersonville, which is a court session dedicated to the disposal of cases where felony level defendants choose to plead guilty, with or without a plea agreement, more than 20 defendants were sentenced by the Honorable Peter Knight. The felony cases ranged in severity from low level possession of illegal substances, motor vehicle break-ins, to the more serious felonies of involuntary manslaughter, habitual felon status, and attempted statutory rape. All these cases were handled by a team of Henderson County assistant district attorneys assigned to handle all felony matters.

In the most serious offenses:

• Mario H. Sanchez, 46, of Hendersonville, pleaded guilty to Attempted Statutory Rape and was sentenced to 94-173 months in prison. It is anticipated that upon completion of his sentence, Sanchez will be immediately deported to his country of origin.
• Daniel W. Owen, 45, of Hendersonville, pleaded guilty to Common Law Robbery, Possession of a Firearm by a Felon, and meeting the statutory requirements of being a Habitual Felon. Owen received a sentence of 88-118 months in prison.
• Henry L. Mixon Jr., 53, of Asheville, pleaded guilty to Breaking and/or Entering, Felony Larceny, and Possession of Methamphetamine, and was sentenced to 60-90 months in prison.
• William B. Lorenzana, 29, of Brevard, pleaded guilty to Involuntary Manslaughter and a Hit and Run that caused a death. Lorenzana was sentenced to 32-58 months in prison.

Murray thanked all our law enforcement partners in Henderson County for their professional investigations, hard work, selfless sacrifices, and unwavering commitment to protecting the lives of Henderson County residents.