Carrizo Springs Man Sentenced to 200 Months in Federal Prison for Setting Up Hidden Camera to Videotape Minor Females

In San Antonio today, a federal judge sentenced a Carrizo Springs man to 200 months in federal prison for setting up a hidden camera in his bathroom to video minor females over a four-year period beginning in August 2012, announced U.S. Attorney John F. Bash and FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs, San Antonio Division.   

In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez ordered that 44–year-old Ruben Gallegos Loera pay a $10,000 assessment under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (JVTA) and be placed on supervised release for a period of five years after completing his prison term.

On October 28, 2019, Loera pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.  According to court records, on April 6, 2019, Dimmit County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a call from someone at the defendant’s residence concerning images of child pornography discovered on the defendant’s computer.  A subsequent forensics review of the seized computer revealed the presence of approximately 200 videos depicting the sexual exploitation of children.

“The reprehensible conduct in this case is yet another example of the child exploitation and abuse occurring all over this country.  We will keep fighting for children.  But this issue must be a priority for leaders everywhere,” stated U.S. Attorney Bash.

Loera has remained in federal custody since his arrest on April 18, 2019.

The FBI’s San Antonio Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Texas Rangers, with the assistance of the Dimmit County Sheriff’s Office, investigated this case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Thompson prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.  Led by U.S. Attorneys’ 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 exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.