A Fulton man pleaded guilty to several charges April 19 in Judge Brouck Jacob's circuit courtroom in Callaway County.
Raymond Webster Ryan, 39, pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child and four counts of second-degree child molestation.
Ryan admitted, he was operating a motor vehicle at speeds in excess of 90 mph while fleeing from law enforcement officers with four children as passengers in June 2017. Investigators at the Callaway County Sheriff's Office were looking into allegations that Ryan had sexually abused four children, ages 11, 13, 14 and 15, when they learned Ryan was in a vehicle in the Fulton area with three of those children, as well as a fourth child.
Deputies located and attempted to stop Ryan's vehicle when he fled and went on a multi-county pursuit that ended in Wildwood, a St. Louis suburb. Ryan abandoned the vehicle with the children still inside and fled on foot before he was later apprehended.
Ryan admitted to the judge he had fondled the genitals of each of the four child victims on different occasions between January and June 2017. The judge sentenced Ryan to one year in jail on the charge of endangering the welfare of the children for the car chase and 12 years in prison for each of the four child molestation charges. The judge ordered some of the sentences be served consecutively to others for a total of 25 years in prison.
Under Missouri law, Ryan must serve at least 85 percent of the sentences for the child molestation charges and will not be eligible for parole for at least 20 years.
The case was investigated by the Callaway County Sheriff's Office. The Missouri State Highway Patrol and Franklin County Sheriff's Department assisted in the vehicle pursuit of Ryan.