Former Senator Ray Holmberg arrives at the Quentin N. Burdick US Courthouse in Fargo for a plea hearing in the North Dakota US District Court on August 8, 2024, (Dan Koeck/For the North Dakota Monitor)
A former senator convicted of a child sex crime has been found violating the conditions of his release again while awaiting sentencing.
Ray Holmberg, once a powerful state legislator, pleaded guilty in August to repeatedly traveling from North Dakota to Prague, Czech Republic, for the purpose of engaging in commercial sex with adolescents under the age of 18.
Holmberg was released on October 30, 2023 with certain conditions – including location monitoring, internet restrictions, no drugs or alcohol and no contact with victims or witnesses. According to court documents, the terms were updated this spring to prohibit Holmberg from using electronic devices without permission.
“Since the date of the last status report, filed on August 2, 2023, the defendant has continued to access the Internet for reasons not approved by the Preliminary Investigation Services,” an official of the Preliminary Investigation Service said in the document .
The document states that Holmberg visited social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter seven times between August 13 and 17, and once on September 22, without permission.
On August 7, Holmberg also “visited” a home in Fargo, violating his location monitoring requirements.
“The defendant has been verbally reprimanded and repeatedly reminded of his release conditions,” the document said.
Court documents show Holmberg violated the conditions of his release a few more times this year. An August lawsuit details additional instances in which he used the Internet for illicit purposes, as well as instances in which he visited an adult novelty store. In May he tested positive for alcohol, which is not allowed under the conditions of release.
A sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled. Holmberg, 80, faces a maximum prison sentence of 30 years, a $250,000 fine and lifetime supervised release.
After Holmberg pleaded guilty, the North Dakota Republican Party called for Holmberg to be jailed pending his sentencing. The charge to which Holmberg pleaded guilty would typically result in custody, but prosecutors said during the August hearing that there should be an exception in this case, largely because of Holmberg’s health problems and medical appointments.
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