Registered sex offender sentenced in Fort Worth to 40 years in federal prison for producing child pornography

FORT WORTH, Texas — A registered sex offender living in Fort Worth, Texas, who pleaded guilty to a two-count indictment charging child pornography offenses, was sentenced Tuesday to 40 years in federal prison.

This sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney John Parker, Northern District of Texas.  This case was investigated by the Fort Worth Police Department (FWPD), and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Mark Anthony Pape, 24, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Terry R. Means to 40 years in federal prison.  He pleaded guilty in October 2014 to an indictment charging one count of producing child pornography and one count of committing this offense as a registered sex offender.  Pape has been in federal custody since his arrest in April 2014 in San Marcos, Texas, on a related federal criminal complaint.

According to documents filed in this case, on April 9, 2014, FWPD officers executed a search warrant at Pape’s Fort Worth residence and seized computer media and a cellphone.  A forensic examination of the phone revealed a video depicting Pape and a prepubescent female, about 6 years old, engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  The video was taken in Pape’s home in February 2014.

This investigation was initiated when the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received a cyber-tip regarding an individual who had uploaded an image, containing suspected child pornography, to the Internet.  The investigation led to the identification of Pape, a registered sex offender.

Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Saleem, Northern 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 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.