Source: Office of United States Attorneys
LOS ANGELES – A Guatemalan national and former resident of the West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles was extradited from Guatemala and arraigned today on federal criminal charges alleging that he produced child sexual abuse material of five children.
Miguel Angel Batz Jr., 43, a.k.a. “Mike Batz,” was transported to the United States this morning from Guatemala and arrived at Los Angeles International Airport.
Batz is charged with 12 counts of production of child pornography. At his arraignment this afternoon in United States District Court in Los Angeles, he pleaded not guilty to all counts. A federal magistrate judge ordered him jailed without bond and scheduled a trial to begin October 7.
According to the indictment that a federal grand jury returned in June 2022 and was unsealed today, Batz knowingly enticed and coerced five minor victims – all under the age of 18 years old – to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of that conduct.
The depictions were produced and transmitted using means of interstate and foreign commerce, including by computer, cellphone, and the internet.
Batz originally was charged in Los Angeles Superior Court with contacting a minor to commit a lewd act and later fled to Guatemala. He had legal status in the United States at the time of the alleged offenses.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
If convicted, Batz would face a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison and a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison for each count.
The FBI is investigating this matter. The U.S. Attorney’s Office thanks the Guatemalan National Civil Police Transnational Anti-Gang Unit and FBI Legal Attaché suboffice in Guatemala City for their assistance in this matter. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs working with Guatemalan law enforcement authorities provided critical assistance in securing the arrest and extradition of Batz to the United States.
Assistant United States Attorney Brandon E. Martinez-Jones of the Violent and Organized Crime Section is prosecuting this case.