Source: Office of United States Attorneys
LAREDO, Texas – A 44-year-old resident of Madison, Kansas, has been sentenced for distribution of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Terry Lee Trower pleaded guilty Sept. 10, 2024.
U.S. District Judge Diana Saldaña has now sentenced Trower to serve 146 months in federal prison. In handing down the prison terms, the court the content of what Trower shared merited a significant sentence. Trower will also serve 10 years on supervised release following completion of his prison term, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet. Trower will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.
“In order to completely eliminate this terrible industry of exploitation, authorities need to target not just the supply side of the equation, but also the demand side,” said Ganjei. “As the defendant learned, if you committed a federal offense in the Southern District, we’re going to find you, wherever you are, even if it’s out of state.”
On Dec. 13, 2023, law enforcement had identified an online user, later identified as Trower, sharing multiple files containing child sexual assault material (CSAM) in a public Kik chat room. The videos and images depicted children under the age of 12 engaged in various sexual acts with adults and animals.
Trower was in Laredo at the time of the distribution. He was eventually arrested at his residence in Kansas, at which time he admitted he had shared child pornography he found on Kik.
Trower will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The FBI conducted the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine A. Cortez prosecuted the case, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section leads PSC, which marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and identifies and rescues victims. For more information about PSC, please visit DOJ’s PSC page. For more information about internet safety education, please visit the resources tab on that page.