BEAUMONT, Texas – A 30-year-old Orange, Texas man has been sentenced to federal prison for child pornography violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales. 
                 
Riley Rich Gibson, III, also known as Trae Gibson, pleaded guilty on May 20, 2011, to production of child pornography and was sentenced to 300 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Ron Clark. 

According to court documents, on Sep. 23, 2010, law enforcement officers executed a federal search warrant at Gibson's residence located in the 1500 block of Link Avenue in Orange, Texas.  A search of Gibson's personal computer revealed images of child pornography, some of which are alleged to have been produced by Gibson by using his cell phone camera to photograph a female child younger than 3 years old in sexually explicit poses.  Gibson was indicted by a federal grand jury on Oct. 6, 2010.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

This case was investigated by ICE/HSI, the Beaumont Police Department, and the Orange County Sheriff's Office and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher T. Tortorice.

####

Return to Top