Texas Man Pleads Guilty to Producing Child Pornography

MINNEAPOLIS—Yesterday in federal court, a 41-year-old Texas man who used to live in St. Paul Park pleaded guilty to producing pornographic images of a minor female over a threeyear period. Jose Antonio Soto pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography. Soto, who was indicted on January 11, 2011, entered his plea before United States District Court Judge David S. Doty.

In his plea agreement, Soto admitted that between March of 2004 and February of 2007, he employed, used, persuaded, induced, or coerced a minor female into engaging in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing visual depictions of such conduct on videotapes. The videotapes were made at Soto’s St. Paul Park residence. Soto is currently incarcerated in Texas, serving a ten-year sentence for possession of child pornography.

For the charge now levied against him, Soto faces a potential maximum penalty of 30 years in prison, with a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years. Judge Doty will determine his sentence at a future hearing, yet to be scheduled.

This case is the result of an investigation by the Minnesota Cyber Crimes Task Force, which is sponsored by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Secret Service; the San Antonio Police Department in Texas; and the St. Paul Park Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Clifford B. Wardlaw.

The U.S. Department of Justice is committed to combating the sexual exploitation of children, particularly via the Internet. For more information about these efforts, please visit the Department’s Project Safe Childhood website, at projectsafechildhood.gov.