Louisiana Man Sentenced to 5 Years in Connection with Possession of at Least 2650 Files of Sexual Exploitation of Children as Young as 3

New Orleans, Louisiana – A Louisiana man has been sentenced to five years in prison in connection with possession of at least 2650 files involving the sexual exploitation of children as young as three.

On March 31, 2023, U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that Dominic Romano, age 22, a resident of Luling, Louisiana, was sentenced, on March 30, 2023, by United States District Judge Barry W. Ashe to 60 months (5 years) in prison after previously pleading guilty to a one-count indictment charging him with possession of images and videos depicting the sexual exploitation of children under the age of twelve years old, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Section 2252(a)(4)(B). Additionally, Judge Ashe ordered Romano to serve 10 years of supervised release and pay a mandatory $100 special assessment fee. Judge Ashe scheduled a hearing on July 6, 2023, to determine the amount of restitution Romano must pay to the victims of his offense.

According to court filings, the FBI received a tip from another law enforcement agency that a suspect, later identified as Romano, frequented an online bulletin board with a specific concentration on the advertisement, distribution, and facilitation of sharing child abuse material. The bulletin board was divided into sections and forums based on the victims’ ages and the type of harm inflicted on them.

On May 7, 2020, the FBI executed a search warrant at Romano’s home. A forensic examination of the evidence revealed that Romano knowingly searched for, downloaded, and saved photographs and videos of child sexual abuse material on numerous of the electronic devices seized during the search warrant’s execution. According to authorities,  Romano’s seized devices contained at least 2589 images and 62 videos portraying child sexual exploitation, including youngsters as young as three years old. A digital presentation purporting to be an instruction manual on how to properly victimize “very young girls” without getting caught was among Romano’s collection.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide campaign launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to tackle the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Project Safe Childhood, led by US Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. To learn more about Project Safe Childhood, go to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

U.S. Attorney Evans applauded the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s work in investigating this case. The prosecution is led by Assistant United States Attorney Jordan Ginsberg, Chief of the Public Integrity Unit.