KEENE, N.H. (MyKeeneNow) A Keene man who sexually exploited a young girl under his care has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison following a conviction on charges related to the production of child sexual abuse material.

Paul Baird, 45, was sentenced Wednesday by U.S. District Court Judge Steven J. McAuliffe to 300 months in prison, followed by 20 years of supervised release. He had pleaded guilty in March to aiding and abetting the production of child sexual abuse material after authorities determined he had engaged in sexually explicit conduct with a child under 12 and distributed images online.

Prosecutors said the victim was in Baird’s care when he took at least one explicit photograph of her genitalia and shared three images on a dark web site known for trafficking in child abuse material.

At the time of his arrest, Baird was employed as a bus driver for Student Transportation of America, serving the Contoocook Valley School District.

Homeland Security Investivations led the investigation, with support from the Keene Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Krasinski.

The case was brought under the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 aimed at protecting children from exploitation through coordination of federal, state, and local resources.

Read earlier stories:

Keene man pleads guilty in federal child exploitation case – My Keene Now