Fort Worth man sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for producing child pornography

FORT WORTH, Texas — A Fort Worth man was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge John McBryde to 30 years in federal prison and eight years of supervised release for producing child pornography.

This sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney John Parker, Northern District of Texas. This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Fort Worth Police Department.

Ronald Sweatt, 48, pleaded guilty, in May 2016 to one count of producing child pornography.

According to the indictment, in June 2015 Sweatt persuaded a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct outside the United States to produce a video.

Officers with the Fort Worth Police Department executed a search warrant at Sweatt’s home on Dec. 2, 2015, and seized numerous computer media items, including a laptop computer and external hard drive. A forensic examination revealed the video previously described. Sweatt agreed to be interviewed and admitting to living in Mexico for the last 15 years and that he moved back in June 2015. Sweatt also admitted to knowing the video that he produced and transported into the United States depicted a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Saleem, Northern District of Texas, prosecuted this case.

This investigation was conducted under HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 14,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2015, nearly 2,400 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative and more than 1,000 victims identified or rescued.

HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. From outside the U.S. and Canada, callers should dial 802-872-6199. Hearing impaired users can call TTY 802-872-6196.

Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.