A Corpus Christi man today pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography.
According to U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick, 46-year-old Joe Perez admitted to a judge that he had downloaded sexually explicit video and images involving prepubescent minors.
In February 2016, an undercover FBI agent from the Dallas Child Exploitation Task Force was conducting an online investigation into file sharing program looking for potential offenders sharing child pornography, Patrick said.
The agent was eventually able to download multiple files of potential child pornography from a device later associated with Perez in Corpus Christi.
A search warrant was executed at his residence, at which time authorities advised Perez he had downloaded a video approximately two hours in length. One of the screenshots of the video was entitled “PEDOPHILIA Volume 1.”
Perez admitted he was familiar with the video and that he believed that he had recently downloaded it, claiming he had accidentally downloaded the images of child pornography as well.
Law enforcement also seized various electronic devices during the search and a forensic analysis on those devices revealed his smartphone contained 15 images and nine videos of child pornography.
U.S. District Court Judge John D. Rainey accepted the guilty plea today and set sentencing for Aug. 21, 2018.
Perez faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.
Upon completion of any prison term imposed, Perez also faces a maximum of life on supervised release during which time the court can impose a number of special conditions designed to protect children and prohibit the use of the internet.
