August 23, 2007

ICE investigation of online predator leads to indictment of Illinois man
Defendant allegedly planned to abuse two preschoolers

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - A federal grand jury in Alaska today indicted a 42-year-old Illinois man on charges of attempted aggravated sexual abuse and distribution of child pornography following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Randy D. Winslow, of Tilton, Ill., began chatting online in April 2007 with an individual he thought was going to make a 5-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy available to him to be sexually abused in Alaska. He was in fact chatting with an undercover ICE agent, and during one of the online conversations, he distributed child pornography.

Winslow had made plans to relocate to Alaska, quitting his job at Caterpillar, Inc., where he worked on the assembly line.

"We are committed to focusing our efforts on individuals who seek to exploit innocent children," said Leigh Winchell, special agent in charge of ICE's Office of Investigations that oversees Alaska. "ICE will continue its aggressive efforts to protect the most vulnerable members of our society - our children."

This investigation is being conducted under the auspices of ICE's Operation Predator and the Department of Justice's initiative, Project Safe Childhood. Both initiatives target those who prey on and exploit children, including Internet pornographers, international sex tourists, and human traffickers. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices, Project Safe Childhood combines federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov. Additional information about Operation Predator is available at www.ice.gov. ICE encourages the reporting of suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2ICE.

-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

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