Jonathan D. Ross U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas
Marcus Abeyta, a 32-year-old resident of Emporia, Kansas, has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for producing child pornography after targeting a minor he met through an online video game. The sentence was announced by Jonathan D. Ross, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, and was issued by Chief United States District Judge Kristine G. Baker.
Abeyta was indicted on June 4, 2024, by a federal grand jury on one count of production of child pornography. He pleaded guilty to the charge on February 26, 2025. In addition to his prison term of 180 months, Abeyta will serve ten years of supervised release following his incarceration. Federal sentencing guidelines do not allow for parole.
The case began when the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations in Arkansas received a report from an Air Force parent who discovered sexually explicit conversations on their child's iPad on December 4, 2023. Investigators found that Abeyta contacted the minor during an online game session and invited them to communicate further via Discord. During these interactions, Abeyta made inappropriate comments and requested explicit images from the minor, offering money and in-game currency as incentives. Authorities confirmed that Abeyta was aware he was communicating with a minor.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a national initiative started by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to address child sexual exploitation and abuse facilitated by technology. The program coordinates efforts among federal, state, and local agencies to investigate and prosecute offenders while working to identify and assist victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Homeland Security Investigations led the investigation with support from the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations and the FBI. Assistant United States Attorney Kristin Bryant prosecuted the case.
