Sept. 26, 2006

 

OLATHE MAN SENTENCED TO 15 YEARS
FOR PRODUCTION OF CHILD PORNOGRAPHY

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – An Olathe man who paid girls to pose naked for photos and to be filmed in sexual activities has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison.

Mark K. Shumaker, 52, was sentenced Monday during a hearing before U.S. District Judge John W. Lungstrum.

“Mr. Shumaker would pick up three young females under the age of 18 at a residence in Missouri and drive them to his apartment in Olathe, Kan.,” said U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren. “On the way, he would buy them alcohol and cigarettes. He also provided them marijuana. At his apartment, he paid them $100 to $200 each to take off their clothes and pose for photos and perform in videos.”

Shumaker pleaded guilty in June to one count of production of child pornography. He admitted that the Olathe Police Department first heard of his activities from a confidential informant Nov. 8, 2005. Shumaker showed an undercover officer photos of the girls engaged in sexual activity. After officers served a search warrant and seized the photos and movies, they were able to identify three of the minor females who had been filmed and photographed.

In interviews with the girls, investigators learned that Shumaker would pick them up and take them to his apartment where he would give them alcohol and provide them costumes to wear. He usually had the girls film one another and was not present himself while the photos and films were taken, although in one case he took pictures while instructing the girls to kiss, take off their shirts and lie on top of one another. One girl told investigators that by performing “lesbian stuff” they could reduce the number of videos he required them to do for their pay.

Melgren commended the Olathe Police Department and the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Martin, who prosecuted.

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