A Houston resident has been sentenced to prison for distribution and possession of child pornography, as announced by U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani. Emilio Santiago De Los Santos, a former high school teacher, pleaded guilty on April 16.
U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal sentenced De Los Santos to 97 months in prison. He is also required to pay restitution to the victims and will be under supervised release for ten years after serving his sentence. During this period, he must adhere to several restrictions limiting his access to children and the internet. Additionally, De Los Santos will be registered as a sex offender.
“As a high school teacher, De Los Santos held a special trust, charged with watching over the children in his care," stated Hamdani. "At the same time, he was sharing his own stash of child pornography with like-minded offenders and that’s what makes this crime especially abhorrent.”
Douglas Williams, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Houston Field Office, remarked on the efforts of their violent crimes against children squad: “Today’s sentencing is another testament to their commitment and dedication to protect our children from these types of monsters.”
The investigation began when De Los Santos shared multiple files of child pornography through subgroup chatrooms on the Keybase application. Law enforcement executed a search warrant at his residence and seized electronic devices containing 853 images and 380 videos depicting child pornography.
De Los Santos was employed as a high school teacher in the greater Houston area at the time of his arrest. He remains in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility.
The case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sherin Daniel under Project Safe Childhood (PSC). This initiative was launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to address child sexual exploitation and abuse.