DALLAS — A Dallas man who repeatedly raped a seven-year-old child was sentenced to 50 years in prison, federal officials announced Thursday.
Luis Humberto Rodriguez, 30, pleaded guilty in January 2021 to one count of production of child pornography and one count of transportation of child pornography.
Rodriguez was sentenced Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Brantley Starr to 30 years in prison on the production count plus 20 years in prison on the transportation count to run consecutively, for a total of 50 years behind bars.
In plea papers, Rodriguez admitted that he filmed himself sexually abusing a seven-year-old child on multiple occasions, then shared the images with others over the social media application Kik.
At Wednesday’s sentencing hearing, an agent testified that the defendant also admitted to sexual contact with four additional victims – including a one-year-old toddler and a special needs child, the DOJ said.
Court documents said the investigation into Rodriguez began when agents in Olympia, Wash. seized an iPad from a registered sex offender and discovered conversations between the offender and Rodriguez. In those conversations, the defendant discussed a child porn “trade” and offered up his email address, according to the DOJ.
Law enforcement tracked Rodriguez to Dallas and searched his home, where they seized a smartphone containing videos of him sexually abusing a child and a collection of child pornography that he estimated exceeded 20 gigabytes.
Rodriguez admitted in plea documents that he possessed more than 600 videos and images of child pornography, including “sadistic” imagery.
“The sexual exploitation of children is unconscionable," Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Dallas Special Agent in Charge Lester R. Hayes Jr. said. "It is the mission of HSI Dallas to secure the safety of all children. Now that justice has prevailed, our hope is that the victims, their families, and the community will now begin their journey of recovery with this predator behind bars.”
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