Young San Benito Man Sent to Federal Prison for Producing Child Pornography

BROWNSVILLE, Texas – A 27-year-old resident of San Benito has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of sexual exploitation of a minor, otherwise known as production of child pornography, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez. Jonathan Rios aka Jonathan Rios Ventura was an assistant manager at a local restaurant prior to his arrest on July 26, 2016. He pleaded guilty Nov. 16, 2016.

Today, U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen handed Rios a sentence of 235 months in federal prison. He was further ordered to serve 20 years on supervised release, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the Internet. He will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.

At the time of his plea, the court heard that Rios persuaded or coerced a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct. Specifically, he had sexual intercourse with a minor child under the age of six and filmed it with his cell phone.

Rios has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Rio Grande Valley Child Exploitation Task Force and the San Benito Police Department conducted the investigation.

This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason Corley and Ana Cano, 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."