A Milwaukee man convicted of aggravated sexual abuse of a child and abusive sexual contact of a child will spend 45 years in prison, according to U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons.

U.S. District Judge Charles B. Kornmann sentence Dashown Raymond Keys, 26, on Monday. Keys was also sentenced to a lifetime of supervised release and was ordered to pay a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $600, resulting from a jury trial conviction on December 7, 2017.

Keys was indicted by a federal grand jury on April 13, 2016.

Following a 3-day federal jury trial held December 5, 2017, through December 7, 2017, in Aberdeen, South Dakota, Keys was found guilty of four counts of Aggravated Sexual Abuse of a Child, and two counts of Abusive Sexual Contact of a Child.

The convictions stem from incidents between November 1, 2013, and January 1, 2016.  Keys repeatedly sexually abused two young girls, both under the age of 12 at the time of the assaults, while Keys was staying at the home of one of the victims, according to a news release

Keys moved to South Dakota from Wisconsin to stay with extended family. While Keys was primarily and repeatedly sexually abusing the daughter of the family he was staying with, he also sexually abused another child, authorities said. The two victims were friends who would have sleep overs from time to time.  During these sleep overs, Keys would sexually abuse his primary victim’s friend.  The sexual abuse ended when Keys moved back to Wisconsin.

Three days after his departure, the primary victim of his abuse came forward and reported the abuse to her mother, according to court documents. The primary victim indicated that Keys had threatened to harm members of the family if the sexual abuse was disclosed.

“The United States Attorney’s Office remains committed to protecting these most vulnerable victims of society,” said U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons.  “I applaud the bravery displayed by these two young victims in coming forward and facing their abuser in a court of law.  This was not an easy process for them, and I hope this significant sentence imposed against this vicious criminal helps them in their healing process going forward.”

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Sisseton-Wahpeton Tribal Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy R. Morley prosecuted the case.

Keys was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.