June 29, 2007

Puerto Rican man sentenced to six years in federal prison for possession of child porn

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - A 36-year-old man convicted of possession of child pornography was sentenced here yesterday to six years in prison to be followed by 25 years of supervised release following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Victor Rivera-Milan's residence was searched by ICE agents on Feb. 24, 2006. The execution of the search warrant led to the seizure of six computers, 20 hard-drives, several compact discs, videotapes and other electronic media. A forensic analysis of the items seized revealed the existence of over 1,400 photographs and 400 videos of child pornography. Rivera-Milan was subsequently arrested by ICE agents in April 2006.

"Possessing, manufacturing and distributing child pornography is a very serious crime," said Manuel Oyola Torres, special agent in charge of the ICE Office of Investigations in Puerto Rico. "Predators should know that ICE, in partnership with other organizations, has the resources to identify child pornographers and those who hurt our children. We will not rest until we bring them to justice."

The arrest of Victor Rivera-Milan is part of Operation Predator, a comprehensive ICE initiative aimed at those who prey on children, including human traffickers, international sex tourists, Internet pornographers, and foreign national predators whose crimes make them deportable. Since the initiative was launched in July of 2003, there have been more than 10,000 individuals arrested nationwide.

Additional information about Operation Predator is available on the Web 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. This hotline is staffed around the clock by investigators. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, at 1-800-843-5678 or http://www.cybertipline.com.

-- ICE --