Teen Charged As Child Predator

From the Office of County Attorney J.D. Lambright:

Following a collaborative investigation by federal and state law enforcement agencies, Montgomery County has taken a 16-year-old male into custody on charges of Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child, Trafficking of a Person, Sexual Performance by a Child, Possession and Promotion of Child Pornography, Indecency with a Child, Exploitation of a Child, Obscenity, and Unlawful Restraint.

The investigation began in 2012 when the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children forwarded a cyber-tip to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations Unit concerning the interstate transmission of child pornography. The source of that material was determined to be a home in Harris County. When the Homeland Security Investigations Unit became aware of a second transmission from that same location in April of 2013, federal agents and officers with the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office High Tech Crimes Unit executed a search warrant. Investigators recovered approximately 4,000 images and video from the juvenile’s electronic devices located in the home. Police also learned that the juvenile has a 6-year-old male cousin living in Montgomery County.

Investigators then interviewed two adults living at the home in Montgomery County and were able to confirm that some of the images of child pornography depicted the juvenile suspect’s six-year-old cousin inside of that residence. The Harris County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office contacted the Montgomery County Attorney’s Office, and after an initial meeting between the various agencies, additional search warrants were executed at both the Harris County and Montgomery County homes on May 9, 2013. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department also participated in the search at the Montgomery County residence. Police were able to locate almost all of the items set forth in the search warrants. The 16-year-old juvenile suspect was taken into custody the following day, and the Montgomery County Juvenile Court ordered the juvenile’s continued detention on May 13, 2013.

We are seeing a disturbing increase in juvenile sex crimes where both the perpetrator and the victim(s) are juveniles. The Juvenile Justice prosecution team in the County Attorney’s Office takes these cases very seriously, and we will pursue all avenues at our disposal to protect these young victims. At times, such cases are made even more difficult by uncooperative family members who seem to want to deny that such acts are being committed despite clear evidence to the contrary. The sheer number and nature of the charges in this particular case make it especially egregious.

*Note: Because the suspect is a juvenile, we are unable to post his name or booking photo. Should he be tried as an adult, that information will be available to the public.