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BROWNSVILLE, Texas - A 57-year-old Texas man has been sentenced to 14 years in federal prison for possession of child sexual abuse material.
Details of the 14-year sentence
What we know:
Today, a U.S. District judge has ordered Todd Edward Ellison to serve 168 months in federal prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release. Ellison pleaded guilty on Dec. 17, 2024 to child exploitative offenses on two separate occasions.
According to the news release, the evidence showed that Ellison had knowingly possessed child sexual abuse material across multiple digital devices.
1,500+ images, 21 videos seized
In May 2020, authorities suspected Ellison was using social media to impersonate and harass a female victim. Law enforcement obtained a search warrant for his residence where they located and seized over 1,500 images and 21 videos of child pornography, according to forensic analysis.
Ellison will now be ordered to register as a sex offender and will now have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet.
Victim restitution and future custody
What's next:
Ellison will remain in custody pending transfer to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Restitution for the victims will be determined at a later date, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Southern District of Texas.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Rio Grande Valley Child Exploitations Investigations Task Force conducted the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ana C. Cano and Jose A. Esquivel prosecuted the case.
The Source: Information in this article was provided by the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Southern District of Texas.