Asheville woman sentenced in child exploitation case

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WSPA) – An Asheville woman was sentenced to serve a yearslong prison term after pleading guilty to crimes against a minor Monday in a Buncombe County court.

According to a release from the Buncombe County District Attorney’s Office, the Asheville Police Department opened an investigation in August of 2023 into 31-year-old Lynette Lydia Rivera following a report received by the county’s Department of Social Services (DSS) concerning her two-year-old child.

The report stated that a relative of the child, who had temporary custody due to another DSS investigation into Rivera, said they had received a tablet computer from Rivera that had explicit videos on it.

Further investigation found that Rivera recorded sexually explicit videos of herself on the table and that the videos showed her handling the child so that the minor was placed in contact with Rivera’s exposed buttocks and anus.

Rivera pleaded guilty to felony first degree sexual exploitation of a minor and will serve 44 to 113 months at the North Carolina Department of Corrections.

Rivera will also have to register as a sex offender for a term of 30 years. She is prohibited from having contact with the child for the remainder of her life.

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