Former ND Senator Pleads Guilty to Child Exploitation in Czech Republic

FARGO, N.D. — Ray Holmberg, an 80-year-old former North Dakota state senator, has pleaded guilty to charges related to traveling to the Czech Republic for paid sex with underage boys. The U.S. Department of Justice announced on Thursday that Holmberg made 14 trips to Prague between 2011 and 2021, where he engaged in commercial sex acts at a brothel catering to minors. During these trips, he reportedly used the alias "Sean Evans." Holmberg, a Republican who served in the North Dakota Legislature for 45 years and held the influential position of Senate Appropriations Committee chair, resigned in 2022 after revelations of his communications with convicted sex offender Nicholas Morgan-Derosier. The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead reported that Holmberg exchanged 72 text messages with Morgan-Derosier while he was incarcerated on child pornography charges, raising serious concerns about Holmberg's conduct. In a federal court appearance in Fargo, Holmberg pleaded guilty to one count of traveling with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct. U.S. District Judge Daniel Hovland accepted the plea, and Holmberg faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison. Although no sentencing date has been set, prosecutors indicated they would recommend a sentence of approximately three years. Prosecutors also revealed that Holmberg used his alias to boast about his trips to friends, making disturbing comments about the minors involved and suggesting a culture of secrecy around his actions, including phrases like "What happens in Prague -- stays in Prague."