Houston man pleads guilty to multiple counts involving child pornography
HOUSTON — A Houston man pleaded guilty Tuesday to producing, distributing and possessing child pornography.
This guilty plea was 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).
William Lee Niver, 48, appeared before U.S. District Judge Gray Miller June 14 and entered a plea of guilty to one count of producing child pornography, two counts of distributing child pornography, and one count of possessing child pornography.
Niver first came to the attention of law enforcement after he had sent images of child pornography to an undercover agent. Federal agents executed a search warrant at his residence and performed a forensic examination on his computer, resulting in the discovery of more than 6,000 images and 1,000 videos of young children engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The images included children under the age of 12, bondage and acts of violence. Some of the images are of known victims as identified through the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
At the time of the plea, Niver admitted to taking sexually explicit photographs and a video of a minor relative and/or emailing them to others.
“All children have an absolute right to grow up free from the fear of sexual exploitation,” said Sean McElroy, acting special agent in charge of HSI Houston. “HSI will relentlessly pursue predators who abuse our kids physically or by exploiting their captured images.”
Judge Miller has set sentencing for Sept. 1. At that time, Niver faces a minimum of 15 and up to 30 years in federal prison for producing, up to 20 years imprisonment on each of the distribution convictions, and a maximum of 10 years for possessing child pornography.
Assistant U.S. Attorney s Kimberly Ann Leo and Carrie A. Wirsing, Southern District of Texas, are prosecuting this case.
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.
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