San Bernardino County Man Who Recorded Child Pornography on His Social Media Accounts Sentenced to 25 Years in Federal Prison

          RIVERSIDE, California – An Inland Empire man was sentenced this afternoon to 300 months in federal prison for producing dozens of sexually explicit images and videos of children, including videos that were recorded on his Snapchat and Facebook social media accounts.

          Chaunta A. Bashir, a.k.a. “taytheonly,” 27, of Chino, was sentenced by United States District Judge Jesus G. Bernal. Bashir pleaded guilty on July 15 to one count of production of child pornography.

          From June 2015 to October 2018, Bashir produced multiple images of child pornography. Specifically, in October and November 2017, he took sexually explicit images and videos of a 3-year-old victim, including of himself sexually abusing the child.

          In the spring and summer of 2018, Bashir produced additional sexually explicit images and videos of children ranging in age from 4 years to 14 years. Bashir recorded some of those videos on his Facebook and Snapchat social media accounts.

          During a search of Bashir’s home in October 2018, law enforcement officials recovered more than 600 images and videos from his electronic devices that depicted minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

          This matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the Chino Police Department.

          This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tritia L. Yuen of the Riverside Branch Office.