News Releases and Statements

Shawn Shannon, 43, of Muncie, Indiana, was charged with one count each of sexually exploiting a minor and possessing child pornography.

Reginald E. Newman, 29, and his wife, Tiara Jade Newman, 21, both of Topeka, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to sex trafficking a minor, and one count of sex trafficking a minor.

Sean Cantelmo previously pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to have a 17-year-old female engage in prostitution and illegal sexual activity from February through May 2014. Cantelmo admitted that he and others used a cell phone to post advertisements for “escort services” involving the minor female on a website, rented motel rooms in Lackawanna and Luzerne Counties to facilitate the prostitution activities, and purchased condoms for the minor to use when engaging in commercial sex acts.

Under the terms of his plea agreement, Andres Salinas faces a maximum sentence of six years, but not fewer than four years in federal prison, followed by a maximum of 15 years of supervised release. Also, he will be required to register as a sex offender after he completes his sentence.

Kyle Unterbrink, 47, was also ordered to pay $51,000 restitution to the identified victims of the child pornography he possessed and distributed. He is to be placed on supervised release for 10 years after he completes his prison term.

In addition to his prison sentence, Albert Hibbert, 44, was also ordered to pay a $1,000 fine, to supervised release for 20 years after he completes his prison sentence, and to register as a sex offender.

Mark Stamps, of Garland, Texas, 54, pleaded guilty in May 2014 to a felony information charging one count of transporting and shipping child pornography. He has been in custody since his arrest in April 2014.

Counts one and two of the indictment allege that, between October 2014 and January 2015, Kandel Markie Whiting, 35, of Pensacola, knowingly received and distributed images and videos of child pornography. Count three alleges that, on or about March 24, 2015, Whiting knowingly possessed child pornography involving a prepubescent minor and a minor younger than 12.

Marshall MacDonald, 20, who pleaded guilty in March to state child sexual exploitation charges, first fell under suspicion in August 2013 when HSI began investigating an Internet user who hosted an international file sharing website. The website user claimed to have images of what appeared to be a woman using the bathroom and boasted the pictures were taken with a spy camera.

According to court documents, Patrick Joseph Friedel, 29, of Arlington, met five young teenagers online and exchanged sexually explicit images with them. Friedel persuaded the teenagers to send him these images by sending them depictions of other minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

In addition, Jonathan Tyler Prive, 26, of West Melbourne, was ordered to serve a life term of supervision, and to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.

In September 2014, HSI’s attaché office in Colombia received information that Dennis De Jesus, 46, of Ft. Lauderdale, intended to travel the following month from Florida to Colombia in order to engage in sexual activity with minors.

On May 9, 2013, Orlando Peña-Lopez, of Fajardo, was arrested after an HSI investigation revealed that he allegedly attempted to entice one of his sixth grade students.

Bruce H. Niggemann, 65, of West Dundee, Illinois, was indicted April 16 on one count of receiving and one count of possessing child pornography, all via computer. The indictment was under seal until Niggemann’s arrest Wednesday morning. He was arraigned April 22 in U.S. District Court before Charles R. Judge Norgle Sr.

Sylvestre Reyes Jr., 40, was sentenced April 22 to 290 months in federal prison and must also register as a sex offender. Additionally, he will be on supervised release for the remainder of his life. Reyes pleaded guilty to the charges in February.

Donnel Cornelius Shavers, 23, of Waycross, was sentenced Monday to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to charges of production of child pornography and the coercion and enticement of a child under the age of 18 to engage in illegal sexual activity.

According to court documents, from at least December 2012 through his arrest May 1, 2014, Melvin Barber Bridgers III, 34, of Tarpon Springs, formerly of Greenville, North Carolina, used multiple Facebook accounts to pose as a young teenage girl and befriend other girls between the ages of 10 and 16 years old.

Ryan Harding, 29, of Woodstock, was sentenced April. 17, by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 144 months of imprisonment, followed by 15 years of supervised release, for receiving and possessing child pornography.

Eric Lee Bederson, 37, formerly an inmate at the California Medical Facility in Vacaville, California, was sentenced to 42 years in federal prison, without parole, on two child pornography convictions.

Other members of the VGT represented on the board of management include: Australian Federal Police, National Crime Agency’s Child Exploitation and Online Protection Command (United Kingdom), Columbian National Police, Dutch National Police, Europol, Indonesian National Police, Interpol, Italian Postal and Communication Police Service, Korean National Police Agency, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, New Zealand Police and the Cybercrime Coordination Unit Switzerland.

Robert Lawrence Noll, 40, of Brownwood, Texas, who is on bond, faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine, and a lifetime of supervised release. Sentencing will be set at a later date.

Roberto Garcia, 55, from Lubbock, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings to 87 months in federal prison. Garcia, who has been on bond, was ordered to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on May 15.

Jason Paul Tijerina, 30, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gregg Costa to the statutory maximum of 30 years in federal prison, which is to be followed by 25 years of supervised release. Tijerina must also register as a sex offender. He pleaded guilty to the charges in December 2014.

Shawn McCormack, 31, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, was found guilty of four counts of sexual exploitation of a child and two counts of kidnapping.