News Releases and Statements

Michael Scott Wilson of Perry Hall, Md., was sentenced two years in prison for possessing approximately 260 images of child pornography.

Former Hanford High School teacher and football coach Eric Rodriguez was sentenced in federal court Monday to eight years and one month in prison receiving child pornography. Rodriguez received about 30 separate videos depicting minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. The videos portrayed sadism, masochism and other images of violence.

Anthony Zane Austin appeared in federal court Friday and pleaded guilty to one count of possessing child pornography.

Justin S. Mote was indicted Thursday on charges of producing child pornography, coercion and enticement of a juvenile, and for interstate travel to engage a minor in illegal sexual conduct. Mote, of Marysville, Ohio, allegedly drove to Connecticut in August 2012 and recorded sex acts with a 12-year-old girl he met online.

Stephen Keating, 52, of Jesup, Ga., had his initial court appearance Friday morning in federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge James E. Graham. Keating was not granted a bond; his detention hearing will be held before Judge Graham on Monday.

Samuel William Maines was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in federal prison, following his guilty plea in July for possessing child pornography. A forensic analysis of his computer revealed more than 900 videos and 1,200 images of child pornography.

Billy Santos-Feliciano was sentenced Friday to four years in prison followed by supervised release for life for possession of child pornography. The investigation leading to this sentence was conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Puerto Rico Crimes Against Children Task Force (PRCACTF).

Donovan Ray Kendrick, 39, pleaded guilty June 12 to possessing child pornography and was sentenced Nov. 14 to 46 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Thad Heartfield.

Scott Hunter Sauer, 65, pleaded guilty in February to knowingly possessing child pornography. Prosecutors stated in court documents that Sauer was an extremely organized collector of child pornography, noting that his organization "speaks to the amount of time and energy he devoted to child pornography. His sexual interest in children was not a passing interest, but a myopic one."

Scott Blake, a principal at Polo Park Middle School in Wellington, Fla., used an online social networking service to contact and meet an individual who he believed was a 15-year-old boy for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity.

Charles Johnson, 70, of Rockville, Md., was sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Judge Alexander Williams Jr. to eight years in prison followed by supervised release for life, for receipt and possession of child pornography. The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Parrish Kappes, 46, and Zachary M. Vincent, 21, both of Tuscola, Ill., were previously charged by criminal complaint and were each charged Nov. 7 in separate cases.

Gary Romano of Norristown, Pa., posed as a babysitter for the sole purpose of gaining access to a 2-year-old girl in order to sexually exploit her. Romano pleaded guilty to the charges in August.

Cedric Conner of Lafayette, La., was sentenced Wednesday to more than 19 years in federal prison for production of child pornography, following an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office.

According to court documents and evidence presented at court, James Edward May II, 42, of Powhatan County, sexually abused a 4-year-old and a 7-year-old child, and produced child pornographic images using them as subjects during 2011. The images were produced using May's cell phone.

Tomas Briones was sentenced Friday to 151 months in federal prison, following his July guilty plea to receiving child pornography.

Hector Capetillo Rodriguez, 39, of Edinburg, Texas, pleaded guilty Wednesday to sexually coercing or enticing a child via text message.

Guy Martin Johnson pleaded guilty Thursday to one count of transporting child pornography. The investigation began in late January when law enforcement officials in Florida were involved in an undercover investigation targeting individuals who prey on children via the Internet using popular social media sites.

Jerry James McGee, 29, of Baltimore, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison followed by 40 years of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett for possessing child pornography.

An Indiana man, Steven Raines, pleaded guilty last week to attempted coercion and enticement to engage in unlawful sexual activity with a minor child, and distributing child pornography.

A Wisconsin man, Bryan Erbst, was sentenced Tuesday to 7 1/2 years in federal prison for possessing child pornography after an investigation conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

David Daniels, 36, pleaded guilty July 12. According to court documents, Daniels was discovered by investigators when using an online message board system where users can trade pornography and child pornography images. Investigators discovered that Daniels had been downloading and trading child pornography images on this website.

A Colorado Springs man, Peter Robert James, was sentenced to serve 15 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography.

Jonathan Scott Lee, 37, made his initial appearance before a federal judge Wednesday on charges of producing, distributing and possessing child pornography following a probe by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Kelso Police Department.

Alan L. Grimmett pleaded guilty Oct. 25 to possession of child pornography, following an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Grimmett, of Hinton, W.Va., admitted he knowingly possessed on his computer more than 600 images and videos depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.