Houston-area man sentenced to 25 years in prison for producing, distributing, possessing child pornography

HOUSTON — A Houston-area man was sentenced Wednesday to 25 years in federal prison for producing, distributing and possessing child pornography.

This sentence was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez, Southern District of Texas (SDTX). This investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) special agents in Alaska and Houston.

Joshua Ray Johnson, 35, from Cypress, Texas, was indicted by a federal grand jury in SDTX for producing and possessing child pornography. He was also charged with distributing child pornography in the District of Alaska which was later transferred to SDTX. In addition to his prison sentence, Johnson will be on supervised release for life 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 must also register as a sex offender. Johnson pleaded guilty to all the charges Aug. 9, 2016.

U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas ordered Johnson to serve 300 months and 240 months for the production and distribution convictions, respectively. These sentences will run concurrently for a total 300-month prison term. At the hearing, the father of the victim appeared in court and stated that no parent should have to go through what he has. In handing down the sentence, Judge Atlas stated what Johnson did was abhorrent and deplorable.

This investigation began in Alaska where an HSI special agent was acting in an undercover capacity working to combat online child exploitation. Authorities discovered Johnson took lewd and lascivious photos of a 2-year-old female victim and distributed them via the Internet. The images showed her legs spread apart and focused on the toddler's genitalia.

Based on the images received in Alaska, a search warrant was executed locally and the victim was identified. In addition to the 70 images of the victim that Johnson produced, there were more than 2,000 images and videos of child pornography. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) identified 22 known victims in Johnson's possession. NCMEC also indicated other law enforcement agencies in investigations around the world have seen the images Johnson produced. The victim in this case is now the subject of a particular series as identified by NCMEC.

Johnson will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sherri L. Zack, Southern 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.

For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI’s Operation Predator smartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page.