Southwest Texas man sentenced to nearly 16 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography
SAN ANTONIO — A southwest Texas man was sentenced Monday to nearly 16 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography.
This sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Richard Durbin, Western District of Texas. This investigation was led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Bryan DeWain Splawn, 47, from Hondo, Texas was sentenced March 27 by U.S. District Judge Alia Moses who ordered Splawnl to serve 188 months in prison. In addition to the prison term, Judge Moses ordered Splawn be placed on supervised release for 10 years after completing his prison term. On July 28, 2016, Splawn pleaded guilty to one count of distributing child pornography.
“These HSI investigations help protect children by taking child predators off the internet and off the streets by putting them behind bars," said Special Agent in Charge Shane Folden, HSI San Antonio. "Targeting these crimes against children is a high priority for HSI. We will continue to dedicate our law enforcement resources to identify and bring to justice child predators who traumatize and victimize children."
According to court documents, on Dec. 9, 2015, HSI launched its investigation after making contact online with Splawn who was actively seeking minor females for sex. During this investigation, while Splawn was chatting and texting online, he emailed five videos containing child pornography to an undercover agent.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys from Western 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.
Updated: