Missouri man pleads guilty to producing child pornography

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A southwestern Missouri man, who pleaded guilty in federal court Tuesday to producing child pornography, now faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison.

This guilty plea resulted from an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the St. Mary’s County (Maryland) Sheriff’s Department.

Brett Corcoran, 26, of Ava, Missouri, pleaded guilty to the charge contained in a Sept. 30, 2015, federal indictment. Corcoran has been in federal custody since his Oct. 6 arrest.

By pleading guilty, Corcoran admitted that he used a minor victim to produce child pornography between Jan. 1 and May 13, 2015. According to court documents, Corcoran engaged in numerous sexting conversations with a 14-year-old victim in Maryland using an app called KIK Messenger. He sent pornographic images of himself to her, and solicited images from the child victim.

Under federal statutes, Corcoran is subject to a mandatory sentence of 15 to 30 years in federal prison without parole. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the U.S. Probation Office completes a presentence investigation.

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.