Longtime fugitive and former school teacher sentenced on child pornography charges

BUFFALO, N.Y. – An upstate New York man, who was convicted for receipt of child pornography, was sentenced to 120 months in prison and five years of supervised release. The sentence is the result of an investigation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Yusef Alhakk, aka Joseph Daniels, 67, of Buffalo, N.Y., was teaching at Bennett High School when he was arrested in 2005 on child pornography charges. Several months after his arrest, the defendant fled the United States and remained a fugitive for more than five years. During this time, he became one of ICE's top ten most wanted fugitives. Alhakk was apprehended on Dec. 30, 2010, as he attempted to re-enter the United States at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

The defendant received images of child pornography on his home computer. Alhakk had more than 600 images of child pornography, some depicting prepubescent children less than 12 years old.

This investigation is part of Operation Predator, a nationwide ICE HSI initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel overseas for sex with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders, and child sex traffickers. ICE HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators.

Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, at 1-800-843-5678 or http://www.cybertipline.com.

The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of ICE HSI. The U.S. Marshals Service assisted in the apprehension of the defendant.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marie P. Grisanti.