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March 31, 2015Fargo, ND, United StatesChild Exploitation

Nebraska man sentenced to 210 months for distributing child pornography

FARGO, N.D. — A Nebraska man was sentenced in federal court Monday to 210 months in prison for distributing child pornography.

This sentence resulted from an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Dickinson (North Dakota) Police Department and the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigations (BCI).

Robert Vangorden, 41, of Omaha Nebraska, was sentenced to 17 years and 6 months (210 months) for distributing materials involving the sexual exploitation of a minor. Vangorden will also serve 10 years of supervised release following his incarceration. Additionally, he was ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Crime Victims' Fund and $5,000 in restitution.

During the summer of 2013, the Dickinson Police Department conducted an undercover operation to identify child predators online. During the operation officers posed as a 14-year-old girl on various different social network sites. Special agents with HSI later joined the investigation.

Undercover authorities began communicating with Vangorden on a social media site known as "Chat Avenue" and later communicated with him via Yahoo Messenger. Vangorden also engaged in sexually explicit conversations and sent multiple images and videos containing child pornography, including a sexually-explicit webcam video of himself.

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 12,000 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 2,000 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.

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