United States Attorney Richard B. Roper
Northern District of Texas

FEDERAL INDICTMENT CHARGES LUBBOCK, TEXAS, MAN
WITH RECEIVING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY

LUBBOCK, Tx. — U.S. Attorney Richard B. Roper, of the Northern District of Texas, announced that a federal grand jury in Lubbock returned an indictment today charging Lubbock resident, Kenneth Douglas Baker, Jr., with four counts of receipt of child pornography.

Baker was arrested yesterday on a criminal complaint charging one count of receipt of child pornography, and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nancy M. Koenig to make his initial appearance on the charges. Baker remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing, scheduled for Monday, August 20, at 10:00 a.m., to determine whether he should be released on pretrial bond.

According to court records, Baker was identified as a contact of an Ohio man who was arrested for child sexual exploitation. When interviewed by FBI agents at his Lubbock residence, Baker admitted that he used the Internet to trade images and videos of both adult and child pornography.

An indictment is an accusation by a federal grand jury and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty. However, if convicted on all counts of the indictment, Baker, 23, faces a maximum statutory sentence of 80 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov

U.S. Attorney Roper commended the investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Lubbock Police Department, the Fairfax County, Virginia, Police Department, and the FBI Washington Joint Cyber Task Force. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven M. Sucsy of the Lubbock, Texas, U.S. Attorney’s Office.

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