SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio man was sentenced to 25 years in prison for possessing and distributing child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office Western District of Texas.
Stephen Aaron Potts used peer-to-peer file-sharing software to distribute 194 files, which contained 2.3 terabytes of child sex abuse material. The files were shared with an undercover law enforcement computer between Nov. 17, 2021, and Jan. 19, 2022, according to court documents.
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The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Homeland Security Investigations executed a search warrant at Potts’ home on May 4, 2022, seizing 22 external hard drives, two computers, one laptop, four flash drives, three smartphones, and five microSD cards.
The seized computers and storage devices contained 2.5 terabytes of child porn, including 9,085 videos and 31,861 images, forensic analysts found.
Potts was taken into federal custody the day the search warrant was executed. He told investigators he would leave his computer on 24/7 to download the files from peer-to-peer software.
“Today’s sentence serves as a reminder to all predators. We will not allow crimes against children to go unpunished,” stated Alejandro M. Amaro, acting special agent in charge for HSI San Antonio. “While this significant sentence cannot repair the damage done to the children exploited by these images, it is a warning to those who engage in this behavior: HSI and our law enforcement partners will be relentless in our pursuit of online predators.”
Potts pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography on Oct. 25, 2022. He has remained in federal custody since his arrest on May 4, 2022.