Kentucky teacher charged with enticing minor, producing child pornography

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A Louisville high school teacher and assistant coach was arrested Tuesday and charged in a criminal complaint with violating child exploitation laws, announced Acting U.S. Attorney John E. Kuhn Jr., Western District of Kentucky.

These charges resulted from an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Patrick Newman, 33, appeared June 2 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dave Whalin. He is charged with engaging in unlawful online communications with a 13-year-old male (“John Doe”) using the social media applications VINE and KIK. Newman illegally used a means or facility of interstate commerce to knowingly persuade, induce, entice or coerce John Doe to engage in sex.

During the online communications, Newman used, persuaded, induced, enticed or coerced a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct to produce visual depictions of such conduct which would be transported or transmitted in interstate commerce. In addition, Newman is charged with possessing child pornography.

"At this point, the charges relate only to online activity," stated Kuhn.  "Law enforcement has no information at present about criminal conduct other than online activity. These very disturbing allegations should underscore how important it is for parents to be aware of their children's Internet activity.  The Department of Justice is committed to our children’s safety and to prosecuting those who prey on the most vulnerable."

According to the affidavit attached to the criminal complaint, on Jan. 23 the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a CyberTip on Twitter regarding the upload of 12 child pornography videos to VINE (a video-sharing website owned by Twitter), and one image uploaded from the same Internet Protocol computer address in the Dallas, Texas, area between Dec. 28, 2014 and Dec. 30, 2014.

Further, a Dallas Police Department investigation revealed that a 13-year-old male had exchanged nude and sexually explicit photographs of himself with an adult male in March 2015 using KIK messenger. John Doe further described several sexually explicit conversations with the adult male in which sexually explicit photographs and videos were traded between them.

John Doe stated the adult male instructed him to engage in various sexual acts and send videos/photos of the acts to him. John Doe stated that the individual sent him a facial picture and described the man as Caucasian, bald, with a dark beard. According to John Doe, the adult male told him he lived in Oklahoma. An investigation by Texas law enforcement revealed the IP address of the KIK account belonged to Patrick Newman.

A search warrant of Newman’s Louisville residence was executed Tuesday morning by HSI special agents. Newman was arrested and is currently in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. A detention hearing is scheduled for June 5.

If convicted at trial, Newman faces a mandatory prison term of 15 years and up to life in prison, and up to a lifetime of supervised release.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jo E. Lawless, Western District of Kentucky, is prosecuting this case.

An indictment is merely an accusation; the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

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 2014, more than 2,300 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.

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.