Abilene Man Pleads Guilty To Federal Child Pornography Charge

ABILENE, Texas — Steven Edward Robb, 59, of Abilene, Texas, appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge E. Scott Frost, in federal court in Abilene, and pleaded guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography.   Robb, who is on bond, faces a maximum statutory penalty of not less than five years or more than 20 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine and a lifetime of supervised release.  A sentencing date was not set.  U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas made the announcement today.

According to documents filed in the case, in July 2013, Robb knowingly received two video files depicting minor females engaging in sexually explicit conduct. 

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Abilene Police Department are investigating.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven M. Sucsy of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Lubbock, Texas, is in charge of the prosecution.