Houma Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing Child Pornography

NEW ORLEANS – NICHOLAS GARCIA (“GARCIA”), age 33, of Houma, Louisiana, pleaded guilty yesterday to possession of child pornography, announced United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser.

According to documents filed in federal court, special agents with the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation  (“LBI”) obtained a search warrant for GARCIA’s residence in Houma, Louisiana.  Law enforcement officers and agents with LBI, the Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”) executed the search warrant.  On February 21, 2018, law enforcement officers arrested GARCIA after finding that GARCIA was in possession of a Samsung Galaxy tablet that contained images and videos of child pornography.  A subsequent computer forensic examination by HSI revealed over 350 images and 3 videos depicting the sexual victimization of pre-pubescent children on GARCIA’s Samsung device.

Sentencing will be held on February 21, 2019, before U.S. District Judge Barry W. Ashe.  The maximum penalty GARCIA may receive is not more than twenty (20) years imprisonment and a supervised release term of up to life.

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 the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”           

U.S. Attorney Strasser praised the work of the U. S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation, and Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Office in investigating this matter.  The prosecution of this case is being handled by Project Safe Childhood Coordinator and Financial Crimes Unit Supervisor, Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba.