Previously convicted Southeast Texas sex offender sentenced to 50 years in prison for producing child pornography while babysitting 7-year-old
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A Southeast Texas man was sentenced Wednesday to 50 years in federal prison for producing child pornography while babysitting a 7-year-old girl, and other related crimes.
This sentence was announced by 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), and the Aransas Pass (Texas) Police Department, with assistance from the Corpus Christi Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Daniel Benson Billman Jr., 43, of Aransas Pass, was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Janis Graham Jack to 600 months in federal prison. Billman was further ordered to serve the rest of his life on supervised release, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the Internet. He will also be ordered to register as a sex offender and must pay $8,000 in restitution. In handing down the sentence, Judge Jack told Billman that if she could have given him more time, she would have done so. Billman pleaded guilty to the charges Jan. 4.
“HSI will relentlessly pursue predators who physically abuse our kids or who exploit their captured images,” said Sean McElroy, acting special agent in charge of HSI Houston. "Removing sexual predators like Mr. Billman from our communities and bringing them to justice is a top priority for HSI.”
At the March 16 hearing, the court heard an impact statement from the victim’s mother. In her statement, she detailed how the crime had affected her daughter and family. Additional information was also presented including the fact that Billman had 14 previous criminal convictions. Of those, five were for failing to register as a sex offender. The court also heard testimony from an HSI special agent who explained that authorities discovered text messages between Billman and a woman who had an 11-year-old daughter. In the text messages, Billman requested nude photographs of the girl, instructed the woman on how to take the photographs, and instructed her on how to groom the child in order to entice her into having sex with Billman.
At the time of Billman’s guilty plea, Judge Jack heard that authorities had learned of a possible sexual assault involving a 7-year-old child in August 2015. The child was soon identified, confirmed the abuse, and that Billman was the man who committed the crime.
Authorities executed a search warrant at Billman’s residence and seized a cellular telephone. Forensic examination led to the discovery of three images and one video of the child involved in sexual explicit conduct. Authorities also located over 1,000 images of child pornography. The images depicted infants and toddlers involved in sexual explicit conduct. Many of the images included bondage with the use of rope and duct tape as well as bestiality.
Billman admitted he sexually assaulted the child and took explicit photographs and video of the incident.
Billman and his girlfriend had placed an ad on the Craigslist website offering babysitting services. The victim’s mother answered the ad and the girlfriend was supposed to care for the children. Instead, Billman sexually assaulted the 7-year-old girl in a hotel and in his girlfriend’s Ford Explorer. He also recorded the crime.
Billman was arrested on the federal charges in October 2015. He has been in custody since that time, where he will remain pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Hugo R. Martinez, Southern District of Texas, prosecuted 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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