East Oklahoma man sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for sexually exploiting his young daughter

TULSA, Okla. — An East Oklahoma man was sentenced Thursday to 25 years in federal prison for sexually exploiting his 17-month-old daughter.

This sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. for the Northern District of Oklahoma. This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

In addition to the prison sentence, U.S. District Chief Judge Gregory K. Frizzell ordered Batten to be placed on supervised release for the remainder of his life.

“Today’s prison sentence is a result of the defendant’s unspeakable and heinous acts committed against his young daughter,” said U.S. Attorney Williams. “The Northern District of Oklahoma is committed to protecting a child’s opportunity and right to have a childhood that is free from sexual abuse, trauma, and exploitation.”

Kenneth O’Neal Batten, 37, of Claremore, Oklahoma, was charged Sept. 8, 2015; he pleaded guilty Jan. 12, 2016.

According to court documents, Batten admitted that, from June 28 to Aug. 4, 2015, he produced videos of sexually explicit conduct involving his 17-month-old daughter. He shipped and transported the sexually explicit videos and images via cell phone. In addition, Batten admitted to possessing more than 1,100 images and 211 videos of child pornography.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney’s Clinton Johnson and Shannon Cozzoni.

This investigation was conducted under HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 14,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2015, nearly 2,400 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative and more than 1,000 victims identified or rescued.

HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. From outside the U.S. and Canada, callers should dial 802-872-6199. Hearing impaired users can call TTY 802-872-6196.

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-THE-LOST.

For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI’s Operation Predator smartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page.