United States Attorney Matthew D. Krueger of the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on May 1, 2018, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Adam J. Westphal (age: 41) of Cudahy, Wisconsin. Westphal faces charges of attempted production of child pornography, distribution of child pornography, and the attempted enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity, contrary to Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2251(a), 2252A, and 2422(b). He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years and up to a lifetime of incarceration in federal prison.
According to court filings, Westphal joined an online chat room named “taboo" under the user name “daddyinyouagain." Soon thereafter, he began sending sexually explicit videos and photographs of pre-pubescent children to a person whom he believed to be a 34 year-old mother of a 14 year-old daughter, but was in actuality an undercover investigator with the state’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force. Eventually, Westphal made arrangements to travel to a residence in Neenah, Wisconsin, for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity with the 14 year-old girl and with the intent of making a pornographic video of the encounter which he could later share on the internet.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006, by the U.S. Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This case was investigated by the Wisconsin Department of Justice’s ICAC Task Force and the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel R. Humble.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. #
For further information contact:
Public Information Officer Dean Puschnig, (414) 297-1700
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
