Wisconsin man sentenced in North Dakota to 10 years in prison for possessing child pornography

FARGO, N.D. – A Wisconsin man was sentenced in federal court Monday to 10 years in prison on multiple counts of possessing child pornography.

This sentence resulted from an investigation by the following agencies: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), the North Dakota Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force and the Fargo (N.D.) Police Department.

Robert Carey Evans, 58, of Waukesha, Wis., was sentenced to 10 years in prison on 14 counts of possessing materials containing child pornography.

This case came to the attention of law enforcement after a BCI agent discovered two computers in North Dakota that were sharing child pornography in a peer-to-peer network. A search warrant was issued for Evans’ Fargo apartment where authorities seized more than 13 hard drives and 43 DVDs containing child pornography. A subsequent forensic examination of this media revealed more than 22,000 images and nearly 1,400 videos of child pornography.

Evans was also ordered to register as a sex offender for life, and to pay a $1,400 special assessment to the Crime Victim’s Fund. A federal jury found Evans guilty of these charges Oct. 25.

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 10,000 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 2013, 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.