Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime News
SIOUX FALLS – United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Lawrence L. Piersol has sentenced a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, man convicted of Distribution of Child Pornography and Assaulting, Resisting, and Impeding a Federal Officer. The sentencing took place on November 25, 2024.
Brad Hicks, age 58, was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $200, and restitution in the amount of $39,000. Hicks must register as a sex offender upon release from federal prison.
Hicks was indicted by a federal grand jury in February 2024. He pleaded guilty on September 4, 2024.
The conviction stemmed from Hicks creating an account through the application BitTorrent to send and receive images and videos of child pornography. He was found to be in possession of 3,045 images and 743 videos of child pornography, which included a victim as young as 3-5 years old.
In addition, on February 27, 2024, when the U.S. Marshal Service attempted to take Hicks into custody, Hicks observed law enforcement outside of his home, retrieved a firearm, and proceeded to have a multi-hour standoff with the Sioux Falls SWAT team. The standoff ended after tear gas was deployed and Hicks finally surrendered.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, FBI, and the U.S. Marshal Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Ebert-Webb prosecuted the case.
Hicks was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.