Tucson man sentenced to 30 years for producing child pornography

TUCSON, Ariz. – A Tucson resident convicted of producing child pornography was sentenced Tuesday to 30 years in federal prison, following an investigation spearheaded by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Eric James Alvarez, 29, pleaded guilty in October 2015 to producing child pornography in conjunction with an HSI-led probe that began two years ago. At Tuesday’s sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Cindy K. Jorgenson ordered that Alvarez’s 30-year term of imprisonment run consecutively to any sentence he receives on other child exploitation charges brought by Pima County. Additionally, Alvarez will be required to register as a sex offender and will be subject to lifetime supervision following his release from prison.

According to court documents, Alvarez admitted he produced videos of himself sexually assaulting a pre-pubescent girl. HSI special agents alerted the victim’s parents. A search warrant subsequently uncovered in excess of 200 child pornography movie files on Alvarez’s computer. HSI special agents also discovered at least 130 child pornography files that were shared through use of a peer-to-peer file sharing network.

The prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Carin C. Duryee, who is based in Tucson.

This case is the result of HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators, and the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Launched in

May 2006, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.

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.