Victoria, TX, lawyer pleads guilty to receiving and possessing child pornography

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - A Victoria, Texas, lawyer, who was convicted on Friday of receiving child pornography via the Internet, now faces a substantial prison term, including a possible lifetime of supervised release. This conviction was announced by U. S. Attorney José Angel Moreno, Southern District of Texas. The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Corpus Christi Police Department.

Stephen Jabbour, 57, pleaded guilty Jan. 7 to possessing and receiving child pornography via the Internet during a hearing before Senior U.S. Judge Hayden Head. Jabbour admitted he had possessed and received child pornography via newsgroups on the Internet in 2008.

ICE agents executed search warrants at Jabbour's home and law office in January 2010. Those searches led to the discovery of hundreds of thousands of child pornography images and videos on several computers and other electronic storage media. Many of these images depicted sadistic and masochistic sex acts on prepubescent child victims. A superseding indictment was returned in October 2010 charging Jabbour with 13 counts: five counts of possessing child pornography in January 2010, and eight counts of receiving child pornography between August and November 2008.

Jabbour faces no less than five years and a maximum of 20 years imprisonment for receiving child pornography, and up to 10 years imprisonment for possessing child pornography. He also faces five years to life of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. During his supervised release, he will be required to comply with any conditions imposed by the court to limit his access to the Internet and to protect children.

Upon accepting the guilty plea and finding Jabbour guilty, Judge Head ordered Jabbour into the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending sentencing. The judge set sentencing for March 31. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lance Duke, Southern District of Texas, is prosecuting the case.

This investigation was part of Operation Predator, a nationwide ICE 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 encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2ICE. This hotline is 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.