United States Attorney Richard B. Roper
Northern District of Texas

DALLAS AREA MAN SENTENCED TO 11 YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON
FOR RECEIVING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY

DALLAS — Melvin Wiand of Addison, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Barbara M.G. Lynn to132 months (11 years) in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney Richard B. Roper of the Northern District of Texas. Wiand pled guilty in April to one count of receipt of child pornography. A federal grand jury returned a four-count indictment in November 2007 charging Wiand, 56, with one count of receipt of child pornography, two counts of possession of child pornography and a forfeiture allegation. He was arrested shortly thereafter on those charges and has been in custody since that time.

In documents filed in Court, Wiand admitted that from November 9 through November 17, 2005, he knowingly received child pornography by downloading it from the internet to his home computer. He admitted that he obtained some of it by paying for subscriptions to child pornography websites, downloading it from those websites to his computer hard drive, and saving images on CDs and other storage media. He admitted that in November 2005, he subscribed to a website called “Illegal CP” and received numerous images of child pornography from that website.

Wiand further admitted that some of the images depicted pre-pubescent minors engaged in sexual acts, and some portrayed sadistic and/or masochistic conduct. He admitted possessing well over 600 images, which he obtained by using his computer to visit commercial child pornography websites, by use of Bearshare, a file sharing software, and via his email.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov

U.S. Attorney Roper commended the investigative efforts of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lisa J. Miller and Aisha Saleem prosecuted the case.

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