Kevin P. Davidson, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama
A Thorsby, Alabama man was sentenced on April 30 to 30 years in federal prison for producing child sexual abuse material, according to an announcement by Acting United States Attorney Kevin Davidson and FBI Special Agent in Charge Sara J. Jones.
The case highlights the ongoing efforts of law enforcement agencies to protect children from exploitation and hold offenders accountable. Authorities said that after his release from prison, Matthew Louis Hourany, age 36, will be on supervised release for life and must register as a sex offender. There is no parole in the federal system.
"Children deserve to grow up safe from harm and protecting them remains one of law enforcement’s highest priorities," Davidson said. "This sentence reflects the gravity of the defendant’s conduct and emphasizes our commitment to stopping predators who target children. We will continue working with our law enforcement partners to ensure offenders are held fully accountable."
Jones said, "The FBI remains unwavering in our mission to identify, locate, and apprehend those who exploit our most vulnerable, our children. We will work tirelessly to keep our community’s children safe and to bring justice to these victims."
According to court records and Hourany's plea agreement, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a tip in September 2024 about child sexual abuse materials uploaded onto a cloud storage drive. The tip was forwarded to the FBI which reviewed files containing numerous videos and images depicting child sexual abuse material. Investigators identified Hourany as the account owner; he was arrested on March 23, 2025.
Hourany pleaded guilty on January 8, 2026, admitting during his plea hearing that he enticed or coerced minors into producing explicit videos or images on at least six separate occasions involving different victims each time.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation led the investigation with assistance from the Alabama Attorney General’s Office and NCMEC. Assistant United States Attorneys Tara S. Ratz, John J. Geer III, and Patrick Lamb prosecuted the case.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood—a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006—designed to combat child exploitation through coordination among federal, state, and local agencies.
