HSI Kansas City investigation leads to 40-year sentence for man who sexually exploited child

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A West Plains man was sentenced in federal court for the sexual exploitation of a 13-month-old child and distributing child sex abuse material following a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Kansas City probe.

Kenneth Howard Worthy, 48, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 40 years in federal prison without parole. The judge also sentenced Worthy to 15 years of supervised release following incarceration. Worthy must register as a sex offender upon his release from prison and will be subject to federal and state sex offender registration requirements, which may apply throughout his life.

On Dec. 6, 2022, Worthy was found guilty at trial of one count of the sexual exploitation of a child by producing child pornography and one count of distributing child pornography.

Worthy’s criminal activities came to light during an investigation of another individual involved with child sexual abuse material. That individual informed investigators that Worthy had transmitted images of himself engaged in sexual acts with a child.

On March 4, 2021, law enforcement officers contacted Worthy at his residence. Worthy admitted that he had used a child victim under the age of two, identified in court documents as “John Doe,” to produce child sex abuse material. Worthy also told investigators he sent sexually abusive images of the child victim to another person.

Agents seized Worthy’s cellphone. Investigators found 10 images of child sex abuse that depicted John Doe and Worthy.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cameron Beaver, James J. Kelleher and Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by HSI Kansas City, the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force and the West Plains Police Department.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. attorney’s offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.

HSI is 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 more than 8,700 employees consists of more than 6,000 special agents assigned to 237 cities throughout the United States, and 93 overseas locations in 56 countries. HSI’s international presence represents DHS’ largest investigative law enforcement presence abroad and one of the largest international footprints in U.S. law enforcement.

Learn more about our mission to combat crimes against children in the community on X, formerly known as Twitter, @HSIKansasCity.