Arizona Man, Vittorio Francesco Gonzalez-castillo, Arrested After Being Indicted For Conspiracy To Produce Child Pornography

VITTORIO FRANCESCO GONZALEZ-CASTILLO, age 26, a resident of Tucson, Arizona, was arrested in Arizona after being indicted by an Eastern District of Louisiana Federal Grand Jury on January 24, 2014 for Conspiracy to Produce Child Pornography, announced U. S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr.   

According to court documents, as a result of a nationwide child exploitation investigation, special agents with the New Orleans Office of the United States Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”) determined that GONZALEZ-CASTILLO was responsible for producing videos depicting the sexual exploitation of children. 

Additionally, GONZALEZ-CASTILLO was previously indicted on February 6, 2013, by a Federal Grand Jury in the District of Arizona for Distribution, Possession, and Knowing Access of Child Pornography.  He is currently awaiting trial in Arizona on those charges.  Upon resolution of the charges in Arizona, GONZALEZ-CASTILLO will be extradited to the Eastern District of Louisiana to address the new charges filed against him. 

Conspiracy to produce child pornography carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum sentence of 30 years.  If convicted, GONZALEZ-CASTILLO will have to register has a sex offender.

U.S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr. reiterated that an Indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

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 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.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations.  The prosecution of this case is being handled by Project Safe Childhood Coordinator and Fraud Section Chief, Assistant U. S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba.

(Download Indictment )