D O J Seal
U.S. Department of Justice


United States Attorney James T. Jacks
Northern District of Texas

 

 
 
 

 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA INQUIRIES: KATHY COLVIN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2010
http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/txn/

 

 


 

 

LUBBOCK MAN ADMITS ATTEMPTING TO SEND
OBSCENE MATERIAL TO A MINOR OVER THE INTERNET


LUBBOCK, Texas — Santos Rivera, Jr., 34, formerly of Lubbock, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings to one count of attempted transfer of obscene material to a minor, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas. Rivera, who remains on bond, faces a maximum statutory sentence of 10 years in prison, a lifetime of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. Judge Cummings ordered a presentence report with sentencing to be scheduled after the completion of that report.

According to documents filed in the case, Rivera admitted that on March 3, 2009, he used Yahoo! Instant Messaging to chat with a person he believed was a 15-year-old girl. That person, however, was an undercover police officer. During the course of their chat, Rivera expressed an interest in engaging in sexual activity with the girl. He also used a webcam to send her a live video broadcast of an adult male engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov

The case is being investigated by Department of Homeland Security Investigations, the Kenner, Louisiana Police Department, and the Louisiana State Police, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven M. Sucsy of the Lubbock, Texas, U.S. Attorney’s Office.

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