Eighth member of international child porn ring sentenced 15 years in Pennsylvania

2011-05-13 05:11:55 GMT+7 (ICT)

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA (BNO NEWS) -- The eighth member of an international child pornography ring was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Thursday for his participation in the group, prosecutors said.

Dave Dean, 43, a former truck driver from Arizona and Texas, was the last of eight people sentenced of the "Stephen's Group," which used the Internet and social networking sites to exchange images and videos of child pornography, involving children as young as infants who were raped and tortured, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.

"It was outrageous, my conduct, and I deeply regret having done it," a tearful Dean said. "It's clear I have a serious problem."

Despite Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig Haller admitting Dean's apology could be sincere, Haller also noted that Dean is sexually excited by the rape and torture of little girls. As a member of the group, Dean uploaded at least 169 files of child porn, including some involving girls as young as 2 years old.

The group was led by Stephen Sims, 57, of San Leandro, California, and according to Jim Kilpatrick, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in charge of the case, the group had over 150 members, as federal prosecutors have convicted at least 22 of 30 members who have been contacted.

The first member of the group, which is also known as the "Boy Lovers Inner Circle," who was arrested was a Pennsylvania man that has cooperated with federal agents to help break the group's security and identify some of its members. The man was prosecuted for possessing child porn, but prosecutors have protected his identity.

All of the eight individuals were trialed in the Western District of Pennsylvania and were sentenced from 7 to 17 years.

Since October 1, 2010, the ICE has opened over 2,000 possible child exploitation investigations, as many images and videos come from abroad and child porn rings usually have international links.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-05-13

"It was outrageous, my conduct, and I deeply regret having done it, being caught" a tearful Dean said.

What a pathetic bunch of individuals.