U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that Christopher Michael Sommers, a 42-year-old resident of Slidell, Louisiana, was sentenced on December 18, 2024, for possession of materials involving the sexual exploitation of minors. The sentencing was carried out by United States District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo. Sommers received a ten-year prison sentence followed by fifteen years of supervised release and a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.
The sentencing included a ten-year mandatory minimum enhancement due to a previous conviction on December 13, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana for receipt of child pornography.
Court documents revealed that the case against Sommers originated from an undercover online investigation conducted by the Apache Junction Police Department in Arizona. This investigation targeted individuals sharing child sexual abuse material (CSAM). On April 3, 2024, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents executed a federal search warrant at Sommers's residence in Slidell with assistance from the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office and the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation. During this operation, authorities found a Samsung USB thumb drive containing 950 images and videos depicting the sexual victimization of minors.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. The project brings together federal, state, and local resources to locate and prosecute offenders who exploit children online while also working to identify and rescue victims.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office acknowledged contributions from several agencies including Homeland Security Investigations; the St Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office; The Apache Junction Police Department; and the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba, Chief of the Financial Crimes Unit, is handling the prosecution.