Denton County man sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for child exploitation violations

SHERMAN, Texas – An Aubrey man has been sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for child exploitation violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.

John Prentice Robertson, 65, of Aubrey, pleaded guilty to one count of producing child pornography and was sentenced to 360 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Marcia A. Crone on October 21, 2025.

According to information presented in court, between May 2022 and April 2024, Robertson communicated with adult women in the Philippines over an internet-based social media application.  He paid the women to capture images and videos of young children, under the age of 12, engaged in sexually explicit conduct, including oral sex, masturbation, and the graphic display of the children’s genitals.  The women then sent the depictions through the social media application or through live-stream transmission.  Robertson acknowledged that he transferred more than $8,000 to individuals in the Philippines between 2015 and 2021 through just one money remitting service.

This case is 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 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the 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.justice.gov/psc.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Philippine National Police and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marisa Miller and Trial Attorney Rachel Rothberg, with the United States Department of Justice, Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section.

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