Former Houston-area music teacher sent to prison for child pornography following ICE HSI investigation

HOUSTON – A former Houston Independent School District (HISD) music teacher was sentenced March 25 in the Southern District of Texas to 135 months in federal prison for receiving and possessing child pornography, following an investigation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Houston.

Robert Gasper Peri, a 56-year-old former resident of Houston who had access to children for more than 30 years as a music teacher, pleaded guilty to the charges Dec. 9, 2020.

Peri will also be required to serve 10 years on supervised release following completion of his prison term, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet. He will further be ordered to pay restitution to the victims and will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.

In October 2019, law enforcement learned Peri’s email address was distributing suspected child pornography. Authorities executed a search warrant of his email address and at his residence, at which time they seized various electronic devices.

Forensic analysis resulted in the discovery of 706 images and 143 videos of child pornography including children under the age of five, sadism and masochism. The investigation revealed he had been communicating and trafficking child pornography with other individuals.

Peri was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Zahra Jivani Fenelon is prosecuting the case.

HSI is a directorate of ICE and the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), responsible for investigating transnational crime and threats, specifically those criminal organizations that exploit the global infrastructure through which international trade, travel, and finance move. HSI’s workforce of over 10,400 employees consists of more than 7,100 special agents assigned to 220 cities throughout the United States, and 80 overseas locations in 53 countries. HSI’s international presence represents DHS’s largest investigative law enforcement presence abroad and one of the largest international footprints in U.S. law enforcement.