A registered sex offender from Alvin, Texas, Robert Earl Cochran Jr., has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for distributing and possessing child sexual abuse materials. The sentence was handed down on March 12 by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Cochran, aged 63, will also serve a subsequent 10-year supervised release period with strict conditions limiting his access to children and the internet. Restitution matters are pending further determination. He had pleaded guilty on December 17, 2024.
Chad Plantz, Special Agent in Charge of ICE Homeland Security Investigations Houston, stated: "With today’s sentence we have removed an extremely dangerous child predator from the community who was an immediate threat to every child he encountered." Plantz emphasized that Cochran showed no remorse for his actions despite previously serving time for sexually assaulting a young child.
The investigation revealed that Cochran used multiple virtual identities to engage in activities involving child sexual abuse materials from February 2015 until July 2019. After his arrest, he admitted to starting this behavior shortly after a prior release from prison and heavily trading such material between 2015-2016 using three cellphones. Authorities found nine images and 54 obscene representations of children on these devices at the time of his arrest.
Cochran is awaiting transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility. Assistant U.S. Attorney Luis Batarse is prosecuting the case.
For more information about ICE's efforts against child exploitation in Southeast Texas, follow @HSIHouston on X.
