BRAZORIA COUNTY, Texas – A 44-year-old South Texas man has been sentenced to 70 years in federal prison after multiple convictions involving child sexual abuse material (CSAM), coercion and enticement of minors and being a registered sex offender while committing the crimes.
Brian Jones, of Manvel, TX, pleaded guilty on March 12 to two counts each of sexual exploitation of a child, coercion and enticement of a minor, penalties for registered sex offenders, and one count of possession of CSAM.
The Investigation
The backstory:
According to the U.S. District Attorney’s Office, 24 cybertips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children started the investigation in 2023.
An individual, later identified as Jones, had uploaded more than 1,000 CSAM files from April 5–May 8, 2023. The investigation revealed he was a registered sex offender.
Authorities searched his home and seized his electronic devices. The investigation revealed he had more than 11,000 images and more than 850 videos of children engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
Law enforcement also found images and screenshots of an adult female filming two nude children for Jones during several live chats. In some of the images, Jones’ face was included as he recorded himself watching them. Some images also included the adult female touching the minor victims.
Jones had initially talked to the adult female who had a connection to the children. He first requested naked pictures of her and then of the minors.
Text messages between Jones and the minor victims also revealed he asked them to send him images of their private parts. The abuse lasted for more than three years.
Dig deeper:
The investigation also identified the woman. She also pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual exploitation of children and is serving a 50-year federal prison sentence.
This was also not the first time Jones asked children to take pornographic pictures of themselves for him.
He was sentenced in 2016 for indecency with a child by exposure in which he asked his then-girlfriend’s minor daughter to send him naked pictures of herself.
The Sentencing
By the numbers:
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey V. Brown sentenced Jones to 600 months on each of the sexual exploitation charges and the coercion and enticement counts and 240 months for possessing child pornography to run concurrently.
He also received 120 months for each of the penalties for registered sex offenders, which will be served consecutively to each other, for a total of 840 months.
At the hearing, the court heard additional evidence about two victims whom he began talking to when they were just 11 and six years of age.
Jones was also ordered to pay restitution to the victims and will serve the rest of his life on supervised release after he completes his prison term. During that time, he will have restricted access to the internet and will again be required to register as a sex offender.
What they’re saying:
“Mr. Jones’ criminal history, which includes a prior sexual offense involving a minor, demonstrates that he is beyond any hope of rehabilitation, and thus only a life sentence or the equivalent, like the one he received today, can adequately safeguard the community from his future predatory behavior,” said Ganjei. “Although we may not ever fully heal the scars that the defendant inflicted on the victims in this case, we can ensure that Mr. Jones can never harm another child again.”
“Another great investigation through our partnership with Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force,” said Chief Johnny Spires of Pearland Police Department (PPD). “Our detective has been investigating these horrible crimes for more than 17 years and is considered an expert in his field. We are very proud of his work here at the PPD and his continued assistance working with other agencies throughout our area. We ask the public to please help protect our children. If you see something, say something.”
“With today’s sentencing, we have removed a dangerous predator from the community who preyed on children as young as six years old and has shown absolutely no remorse for his heinous actions,” said Special Agent in Charge Chad Plantz of Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) Houston. “The success of this investigation is a direct result of the unwavering support we continue to receive from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) and the tireless efforts of our partners at PPD, who worked closely with our special agents to ensure this individual is no longer free to victimize innocent children.”
The Source: Information in this article is from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Texas and the Texas Public Sex Offender website.
