Ron Welch
Muskingum County Prosecutor
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, September 22, 2026
MAXIMUM 15-YEAR PRISON SENTENCE IMPOSED IN SEXUAL EXTORTION CASE
ZANESVILLE, OHIO - Derron Felder was sentenced to the maximum 15 years in prison after a Muskingum County jury previously convicted him of five counts of Sexual Extortion and five counts of Extortion. Jurors deliberated for less than 30 minutes before finding Felder guilty on all ten felony counts.
Muskingum County Common Pleas Judge Gerald Anderson ordered the sentences to be served consecutively after hearing from the victim and considering Felder's extensive criminal history, the harm caused by his conduct, his lack of remorse, and his continued refusal to acknowledge the wrongfulness of his actions.
THE VICTIM: "I AM A PERSON WHO DESERVED BETTER"
Before the sentence was imposed, the victim addressed the Court and described the lasting damage caused by Felder's conduct and the harassment she says continued even after he was incarcerated.
"I am a person who deserved better. I deserve to have my voice finally heard," the victim told the Court.
She described suffering panic attacks, losing her sense of security, and struggling to continue her work in the community while the case was pending.
"Even without releasing my nude images and videos publicly the damage was already done," she told the Court.
She concluded by asking Judge Anderson to impose the maximum possible sentence.
"I deserve to be able to survive with my head held high and my reputation intact," the victim said. "I ask your honor to impose Derron Felder with the maximum sentence possible today."
Judge Anderson did exactly that.
A CRIMINAL HISTORY SPANNING DECADES
The State argued that the sexual-extortion offenses were not an isolated event but the latest crimes in a criminal history beginning when Felder was a juvenile.
Prosecutors detailed Felder's record for the Court, including:
• An Aggravated Robbery committed at age 17 that resulted in a prison sentence;
• Multiple felony Drug Trafficking convictions, including second-, third- and fourth-degree felonies and offenses committed in a school zone and in the vicinity of a juvenile;
• Felonious Assault resulting in another prison sentence;
• Drug Possession;
• Multiple post-release-control violations associated with new arrests;
• Assault and Obstructing Official Business;
• Violation of a Temporary Protection Order involving repeated telephone and email harassment of a previous victim;
• Domestic Violence; and
• A separate domestic-violence-by-threat case in which Felder sent a victim messages stating that he had never wanted to kill someone so badly and that he could not wait to see her dead.
Prosecutors also presented the Court with statements Felder made during recorded jail calls with his mother.
During one conversation, Felder's mother told him, "You are very disrespectful towards women" and called him "the most disrespectful man I have ever seen in my life."
The State argued that Felder's history of prior convictions, prison sentences, supervision, and other sanctions had repeatedly failed to stop Felder from committing new offenses and that the maximum prison sentence was necessary to protect the public from future criminal conduct.
JUDGE CITES HARM, LACK OF REMORSE
Before imposing sentence, Judge Anderson addressed the serious harm Felder caused the victim, Felder's lack of remorse, and his continued belief that he had done nothing wrong.
The Court then imposed consecutive sentences totaling the maximum 15-year sentence requested by the State.
Muskingum County Prosecutor Ron Welch said the sentence reflects both the seriousness of sexual extortion and the need to protect future victims.
"This defendant has been committing crimes and victimizing people for decades. The only thing that will stop him from victimizing our community is a prison cell."
Welch said the case also demonstrates why sexual extortion cannot be dismissed as a private dispute between two people.
"This was never about a failed relationship. It was never about why intimate images existed. It was about a man deliberately using a woman's most private moments as a weapon to threaten, humiliate and control her."
During the trial, the State introduced Facebook messages and audio recordings documenting Felder's threats. Felder ultimately took the witness stand and admitted making the threats.
Welch said the victim's statement at sentencing demonstrated that the harm caused by sexual extortion does not end when the threats stop.
"Fifteen years is the maximum sentence permitted by law, and it is the sentence we asked the Court to impose. When someone repeatedly commits serious crimes, repeatedly receives opportunities to change, and repeatedly chooses another victim, a long prison sentence is what they deserve."
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