U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani | U.S. Department of Justice
A Houston resident, Emilio Santiago De Los Santos, has been sentenced to 97 months in prison for distributing and possessing child pornography. U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani announced the sentencing following De Los Santos's guilty plea on April 16.
U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal also ordered De Los Santos to pay restitution to the victims and serve ten years of supervised release after his prison term. During this period, he will face restrictions on internet access and contact with children and must register as a sex offender.
Hamdani stated, "As a high school teacher, De Los Santos held a special trust, charged with watching over the children in his care. 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." He emphasized the commitment to prosecuting such crimes vigorously.
Douglas Williams, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Houston Field Office, praised the efforts of those involved in bringing De Los Santos to justice: "The FBI’s violent crimes against children squad consists of very special individuals who work every day to identify, investigate and arrest predators like De Los Santos."
De Los Santos came under law enforcement scrutiny after sharing multiple files in subgroup chatrooms on Keybase. A search warrant led to the seizure of electronic devices from his residence, revealing 853 images and 380 videos depicting severe child abuse.
At his arrest time, De Los Santos was employed as a high school teacher in Houston's greater area. He remains in custody awaiting transfer to a federal prison facility.
The case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sherin Daniel under Project Safe Childhood (PSC), an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation.
