2 central California men sentenced for distributing child pornography

FRESNO, Calif. — Two northern California men were sentenced in federal court Tuesday on child pornography charges, the result of two separate probes conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Central California Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC).

Clark Alan Tyler, 53, of Rosamond, received a sentence of 12 years and seven months in prison for distributing child pornography. According to court documents, between February 2012 and March 2013, Tyler received and distributed more than 600 images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The images depicted sadism, masochism and other violent acts. Tyler pleaded guilty Nov. 25, 2013, to receiving and distributing child pornography. He has been in custody since July of last year.

Daniel Oluwa Sesan Leitch, 31, of Fresno, was sentenced to six and a half years in prison for distributing child pornography. According to court documents, from Dec.18, 2011 through Dec. 20, 2011, Leitch received more than 600 images depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit, violent or depraved conduct. Leitch was indicted Oct. 23, 2013. He went to trial in March 2012, but pleaded guilty on the trial's second day. Leitch was taken into custody following his sentencing.

"Every time a sexually explicit image of a minor is produced, transmitted or viewed, a child is victimized," said Ray Greenlee, assistant special agent in charge for HSI San Francisco. "These sentences send a strong message to online child sex predators that there is a high price to pay for their actions. HSI will continue to work tirelessly to seek justice for those who mistakenly believe the Internet makes them invisible and invincible."

These cases are products of Operation Predator, a nationwide HSI initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders and child sex traffickers; and Project Safe Childhood, a Department of Justice effort launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-347-2423 or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-843-5678.

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 those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. Click on the "resources" tab for information about Internet safety.