Yuba City Man Sentenced to 16 Years in Prison for Producing Child Pornography

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Nathan Penner, 26, of Yuba City, was sentenced today to 16 years and three months in prison for producing child pornography, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert of the Eastern District of California, Special Agent in Charge Ryan Spradlin of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) San Francisco Field Division and Chief of Police Robert D. Landon of the Yuba City Police Department.

Penner pleaded guilty on November 5, 2015, to one count of production of child pornography. U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley sentenced Penner today and also ordered him to serve a lifetime term of supervised release.

In connection with his plea, Penner admitted to producing sexually explicit images and videos of a five-year-old girl in September and October of 2012. During the sentencing hearing, evidence revealed that Penner downloaded hundreds of files of child pornography located on his computer and distributed such material using an online chat messaging service.

“We are gratified by the sentence imposed today, which provides a measure of justice in response to a crime that inflicts tremendous suffering upon the most vulnerable of victims and sends a strong message that all children deserve a childhood free from such exploitation and harm,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Talbert.  “We are grateful for the hard work and collaboration of our local and federal law enforcement partners, and we will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who engage in the exploitation of our children.”

Chief Robert D. Landon stated: “The Yuba City Police Department extends sincere appreciation to all agencies involved in this case. The collaborative effort of all who worked on the thorough investigation and successful prosecution of this child predator should be commended.”

This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Yuba City Police Department. Trial Attorney Reginald E. Jones of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh F. Sigal of the Eastern District of California prosecuted the case. CEOS’ High Technology Investigative Unit assisted with computer forensic analysis for the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and 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.