El Paso Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Federal Prison for Receipt and Distribution of Child Pornography

In El Paso today, 27-year-old Ignacio Gallegos was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for receipt and distribution of child pornography announced United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr., and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Waldemar Rodriguez, El Paso Division.

In addition to the prison term, United States District Judge Kathleen Cardone ordered that Gallegos be placed on supervised release for 10 years after completing his prison term. 

On January 5, 2016, Gallegos pleaded guilty to one count of receipt and distribution of child pornography and one count of possession of material involving the sexual exploitation of children.  By pleading guilty, Gallegos admitted that he received, possessed and distributed visual depictions of children engaging in sexual explicit conduct. 

Gallegos has remained in federal custody since his arrest by HSI agents on May 28, 2015.

“This sentence sends a sobering message to child predators, who are under the impression they can hide in cyberspace,” said Waldemar Rodriguez, Special Agent in Charge of HSI El Paso. “HSI has the tools and training to identify, arrest and help get these individuals out of our society.”

This case was investigated by the Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).  Assistant U.S. Attorney Ian Hanna prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about PSC, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.  For more information about Internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/resources.html.

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