Amidst the Government Shutdown, the United States Attorney’s Office Continues Efforts to Combat Violent Crime and Crimes Against Our Children

United States Attorney Pete Serrano announced that while the Government was shut down and the United States Attorney’s Office continued to work important cases to protect our communities and children from being victimized. The following impactful cases occurred during the shutdown.

Spokane, WA- Former Riverside School Employee Pleads Guilty to 12 Separate Counts of Child Exploitation Involving Multiple Minor Victims. on October 15, 2025, that former Riverside School District employee Dallas Michael Shuler pled guilty to 12 felony counts pertaining to the online exploitation of children. As indicated in court pleadings and hearings, in May 2024, the FBI Spokane Office was contacted due to a child sexual abuse material video, which had been posted online. When questioned about the video, Shuler indicated he had been in contact with the minors depicted in the video and had requested the minors produce the sexually explicit material. Further investigation into Shuler’s electronic devices and online accounts showed Shuler had engaged in hands-on sexual abuse of at least three minor children and had filmed the abuse. He also engaged in online sexual exploitation of children with dozens of additional victims, many of whom were contacted and victimized through Snapchat. The charges pled to encompass sexual exploitation against 37 different minor children. Sentencing is currently scheduled for January 21, 2026. The full press release is located here.

Spokane, WA- Mexican Citizen Sentenced to 120 Months in Prison for Attempting to Entice a Minor for Sex Online. on October 1, 2025, United States District Court Judge Thomas O. Rice sentenced Timoteo Roque Roque to 120 months of imprisonment to be followed by a lifetime term of supervised release for the crime of Attempted Online Enticement of a Minor. According to information disclosed in court documents and proceedings, on July 28, 2024, an undercover (UC) Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Officer (TFO) was participating in an undercover enticement operation in Chelan County with a goal of identifying those who were baiting children online for illegal sex. The UC ICAC TFO was online portraying a 13-year-old child and received communication from Roque Roque. During the communications, Roque Roque affirmed that he was interested in having sexual contact with minors and agreed to pay $250 for 30 minutes of sex with the child. Roque Roque traveled to a hotel on two separate occasions with the intention of having sex with who he believed was a child, before he was arrested. Roque Roque was also unlawfully present in the United States after previously being deported in July 2019. The full press release is located here.

Yakima, WA- White Swan Woman Sentenced to Twenty-Five Years in Prison for Murder on the Yakama Nation Indian Reservation. United States District Judge Mary K. Dimke sentenced Tahsheena Stacie Sam, age 33, to 300 months in prison for Second Degree Murder in Indian Country. Judge Dimke also imposed 5 years of supervised release. According to documents and evidence presented at sentencing, on Christmas Day 2017, Destiny Lloyd, an enrolled member of Yakama Nation, went missing after being seen in a vehicle that night with friends. Four days later, Ms. Lloyd’s body was discovered face-down in a snowy canal ditch located within the boundaries of the Yakama Nation Indian Reservation. Ms. Lloyd was 23 years old. The Yakama Nation Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation began a thorough and lengthy investigation into Ms. Lloyd’s death. After extensive efforts that included collecting evidence and interviewing witnesses, law enforcement eventually discovered that Ms. Lloyd had been killed by Tahsheena Sam on the evening of December 25, 2017. The full press release is located here.

Yakima, WA- White Swan Man Sentenced to Twelve Years in Prison for Attempted Sexual Abuse by Force or Threat on the Yakama Reservation. United States District Judge Mary K. Dimke sentenced Jerry Slockish, age 58, to 144 months in prison for Attempted Sexual Abuse by Force or Threat in Indian Country. The child victim was six years old at the time of the offense. According to court documents and information presented at the sentencing, on June 4, 2019—the child victim’s sixth birthday—Slockish waited until he was alone with the child and told her that he wanted to give her a birthday present. After the child refused, Slockish forcibly grabbed the child and started touching her. The child told Slockish to stop and began to scream. Slockish covered the child’s mouth with his hand and touched the genitalia of the child over her clothing. After Slockish sexually assaulted the child, she attempted to leave the bedroom, but Slockish grabbed her and dragged her back into the bedroom. Slockish then told the child that he would give her “whoopings” and bruises on her eyes, face and legs if she told anyone about the touching. The full press release is located here.

Yakima, WA- Convicted Murderer Sentenced to Thirteen Years in Prison for Assault with Intent to Commit Murder on the Yakama Reservation. Chief United States District Judge Stanley A. Bastain sentenced Jordan Stevens, age 35, to 162 months in prison for Assault with Intent to Commit Murder. According to court documents and information presented at the sentencing, on October 6, 2018, the Yakama Nation Tribal Police Department received a report of shots fired at a residence in Toppenish, Washington. Through their investigation, law enforcement discovered that Stevens shot the victim in the chest for “ripping him off.” The victim’s friend transported the victim to the hospital where he received life-saving care and was discharged a few days later. Stevens is currently serving a life sentence for the 2019 murder of a separate Yakama Nation Tribal member. The full press release is located here.

Yakima, WA- Yakima Man Sentenced to 240 Months in Prison for Attempted Production of Child Pornography and Possession of Child Pornography. On October 7, 2025, Chief United States District Judge Stanley A. Bastian, sentenced J’Lovfonte Jerrome Joe, age 31, of Yakima, Washington, to 240 months incarceration for Attempted Production of Child Pornography and Possession of Child Pornography. Chief Judge Bastian also ordered that, following his sentence of incarceration, Joe be required to complete 5 years of supervised release. In addition, Chief Judge Bastian required that Joe pay $3,000 in restitution to victims of the child pornography he possessed. According to court documents, Joe posted images of a minor child who was in his care to a message board dedicated to child sexual abuse on the dark web on January 22, 2021. In addition to images of the child, including images where the child’s clothes were pulled down and Joe’s tongue was pictured extending between the sleeping child’s buttocks, Joe made statements to other persons on the message board that he was considering drugging the child to complete a sexual assault. On February 2, 2021, Homeland Security Investigations agents and task force officers executed a search warrant on Joe’s residence. Electronic devices seized from that residence linked to Joe, contained over fifty digital files of Child Sexual Abuse Material in addition to images taken of the child taken at his residence. Those other digital files of Child Sexual Abuse Material included images of pre-pubescent children being sexually assaulted by adults. Joe pleaded guilty without benefit of a plea agreement on December 3, 2024, after several violations of conditions of pre-trial release, including cutting off his ankle monitor. At sentencing, prosecutors requested a term of imprisonment of 320 months (26 years, 8 months) to be followed by ten years of supervised release. Defendant requested a sentence of the statutory mandatory minimum of 180 months (15 years) imprisonment to be followed by ten years of supervised release. The full press release is located here.

Pasco, WA- Convicted Rapist and Mexican National Sentenced to 30 Months of Incarceration for Unlawful Reentry After Deportation. On October 2, 2025, District Court Judge United States District Judge Mary K. Dimke, sentenced Jose Luis Cruz-Agustin, age 37, of Pasco, Washington, Washington, to 30 months of imprisonment for illegally entering the United States after multiple prior deportations. Judge Dimke also ordered Cruz-Agustin be subject to a three-year term of supervised release following his term of imprisonment due to his history of unlawfully returning to the United States. According to court documents, Cruz-Agustin was arrested for Driving Under the Influence and booked into the Franklin County jail in March of 2025. Thereafter, Immigration and Customs Officers discovered that Cruz-Agustin, a citizen and national of Mexico, had prior convictions for Rape in the Third Degree, Assault in the Third Degree with Substantial Pain, and Furnishing Liquor to a Minor, in Washington state. These convictions stemmed from Cruz-Agustin’s rape of two 15-year-old girls after he provided them with alcohol in 2015. ICE officers also learned that in 2014, Cruz-Agustin was convicted of various domestic violence offenses which also includes sexual violence. Cruz-Agustin has previously been deported form the United States on two prior occasions in 2016 and 2018. The full press release is located here.