Online Chats with Minor Females Lead to Federal Prison Sentences for Two Men

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown announced the sentencing of two men on child pornography charges. 

Jason Matthew Miller, 26, of Eunice, Louisiana, was sentenced by United States District Judge S. Maurice Hicks, Jr. to 210 months (17 years, 6 months) in prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release. Miller was charged in an indictment and pleaded guilty to attempted production of child pornography. Law enforcement agents began an investigation after receiving information that Miller had communicated with a 13 year old female through Instagram, a social media platform. Through their investigation, it was revealed that in July 2018, Miller had a conversation through Instagram and on his cell phone with the minor female and he told her he was a 15 year old male, when in truth and in fact he was 20 years old at the time. Miller asked the minor female to send him sexually explicit photos of herself and she did so. At the guilty plea hearing on June 26, 2024, Miller admitted to communicating with the minor female and asking for and receiving sexually explicit photos of her. 

In a separate and unrelated case, Michael Rios, 30, of San Antonio, Texas, was sentenced by United States District Judge David C. Joseph to 120 months (10 years) in prison for attempting to produce child pornography.  Rios will serve 20 years of supervised release after his release from prison. At the guilty plea hearing on July 23, 2024, Rios admitted to communicating with an undercover agent who was posing as a 13 year old female on the chat application “Meet24.”  In December 2022 and continuing through the spring of 2023, Rios chatted with who he believed to be a 13 year old female living in Lafayette, Louisiana. During the online conversation with the purported minor female, Rios asked her to send sexually explicit pictures and videos of herself to him and he sent sexually explicit images of himself to her. In addition, he discussed the possibility of traveling to Louisiana on numerous occasions so he and the minor female could meet at a hotel and engage in sex. Rios was subsequently arrested and charged with the offense of attempted production of child pornography.

These cases were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Luke Walker.

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