South Texas man convicted of receiving child pornography videos

MCALLEN, Texas – A south Texas man was convicted Friday after he pleaded guilty to one count of receiving child pornography.

This conviction was announced by U.S. Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez, Southern District of Texas. This investigation was led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Rodrigo Garcia-Fuentes, from McAllen, Texas, pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Randy Crane, who accepted the guilty plea and set sentencing for Aug. 15, 2017. Garcia-Fuentes faces a minimum federal prison sentence of between five and years, and a possible $250,000 fine.

According to court documents, on July 29, 2016, HSI agents executed a federal search warrant at the McAllen residence, during which time they seized a computer. A forensic examination on the computer revealed 218 videos and 730 images of child pornography involving minor children engaged in sexually explicit conduct. These videos included children under the age of 12 involved in sadistic conduct and other depictions of violence. Some of the videos are of known victims as identified through the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Garcia-Fuentes admitted he downloaded and viewed child pornography from the Internet, thereby receiving the child pornography found on his computer. He admitted he had been downloading child pornography for approximately four years.

He will remain in custody pending that hearing.

Assistant U.S. Attorney David Paxton, Southern District of Texas, prosecuted this case.