Houston-area man sentenced to 7 years in prison for receiving and possessing child pornography
GALVESTON, Texas — A former southeast Texas man was sentenced Tuesday to seven years in prison following his convictions for both receiving and possessing child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas.
This investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Friendswood (Texas) Police Department, and the Houston Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
"Child pornography is a permanent record of the sexual exploitation of children, and this victimization continues each time that image is transmitted, downloaded, shared or viewed," said Brian M. Moskowitz, special agent in charge of HSI Houston. "HSI special agents take special pride in their role of seeking justice on behalf of those who have been exploited and victimized."
Miguel Angel Macias, 54, of Friendswood, Texas, was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison by U.S. Circuit Judge Gregg Costa on each conviction. In handing down the concurrent sentences, Judge Costa noted the large number of child pornography images attributed to Macias — more than 20,000. Macias was further ordered to serve 20 years of supervised release. He must also register as a sex offender. Macias pleaded guilty to the charges July 23.
This investigation into Macias began as a result of an investigation into a website and message board by investigators in San Diego, California. During that investigation, a computer was traced to Macias and identified as accessing the message board and downloading images of child pornography.
A search warrant was conducted at Macias's Friendswood residence. At that time, officers seized a laptop computer, a number of CDs and several external hard drives which were found to contain more than 2,000 images and more than 100 videos containing child pornography. During the search, Macias admitted to downloading and viewing child pornography.
Previously released on bond, Macias was taken into custody following the Nov. 4 sentencing. He will remain in custody pending his transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
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 10,000 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 2013, more than 2,000 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative.
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. 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.
HSI is a founding member and current chair of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies and private industry sector partners working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.
Assistant United States Attorney Robert Stabe, Southern District of Texas, prosecuted the case.
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