SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Theodore Allen Leleaux, 34, of Orangevale, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell, Jr. to 15 years in prison for distribution of child pornography with a prior conviction relating to the sexual abuse of a minor, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, in December 2013, agents in Maine and Wyoming investigating distribution of child pornography received unsolicited emails from Leleaux seeking to trade child pornography with accounts that the agents had taken over. On February 2014, a search warrant was executed at Leleaux’s residence. On his cellphone, agents found at least 5,000 images and 400 videos of child pornography. At the time he sent the emails, Leleaux had been convicted in the Superior Court of Contra Costa County of having unlawful sex with a minor who was more than three years younger than him.
“While the Internet has positively transformed the lives of millions, some have chosen to use it as a tool to prey on innocent victims,” said Ryan L. Spradlin, Special Agent in Charge of HSI San Francisco. “This sentence reflects the seriousness of the crimes of the defendant who repeatedly disregarded the law while causing long-lasting damage to his young victims.”
This case was the product of an investigation by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew G. Morris prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet safety education.
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