Los Angeles-area man sentenced to 17 years in federal prison for enticing girl to take pictures while engaged in sexually explicit acts

LOS ANGELES – A Murrieta man identified during a probe by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) has been sentenced to 17 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to enticing a Seattle girl to engage in sexually explicit activity that resulted in the production of child pornography.

Curtis Audun Larssen, 33, was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge S. James Otero to 210 months in prison. Larssen pleaded guilty in June 2017 to one count of using the internet to induce a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity. Once he completes his prison sentence, Larssen will be on supervised release for the rest of his life.

According to court documents, Larssen directed a girl, who is described as being no older than 13, to have sexual contact with adult men. Larssen encouraged the victim to allow him to watch the sexual conduct, and to take photos and videos to send to Larssen. In one case, the girl sent Larssen a photo showing her engaged in sexual activity with a 35-year-old man.

In a plea agreement, Larssen admitted using a peer-to-peer network to trade child pornography. During a search of Larssen’s residence in 2014, authorities found approximately 470 videos depicting child pornography.

Larssen was one of 11 defendants arrested in April 2016 as part of Operation Wide Net, an overarching investigation conducted by the Los Angeles Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, which includes HSI, the FBI, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. These federal law enforcement agencies work with local law enforcement partners, including the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department.

The case against Larssen was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Chou of the Violent and Organized Crime Section.

HSI’s participation in this case was part of Operation Predator, an international HSI initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 16,000 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 2016, more than 2,600 child predators were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative and more than 800 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 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.