BUFFALO—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul,
Jr. announced today that Timothy Bek, 25, of West Seneca, New York, who was
convicted of production and possession of child pornography, was sentenced to
360 months in prison, followed by lifetime supervised release by U.S. District
Judge Richard J. Arcara.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Maura K.
O’Donnell, who handled the case, stated that the defendant, a former teacher at
a number of area schools, posed as a female teenager on a social networking
website. Bek used the fictitious identity to make contact with underage
victims, some of whom were students in the schools where Bek taught. Once
contact was made, the defendant persuaded the victims to take explicit photos
and videos of themselves. Bek further convinced the victims to send these
images over the Internet and via text messaging. The images of these underage
victims were subsequently found on computers owned by the defendant.
The images were discovered by law
enforcement during the execution of a search warrant in connection with the
arrest of the defendant’s brother, Jason Bek. In December 2011, Jason Bek
pleaded guilty to coercion and enticement of a minor and receipt of child
pornography and was sentenced to 144 months in prison.
“This case shines a bright light on a
very serious problem,” said U.S. Attorney Hochul. “Our children can encounter
danger each and every time they log onto a computer or pick up a cell phone.
Predators can be highly educated, cunning, extremely manipulative, and willing
to go to any lengths in order to target and destroy the innocence of a child.
For these reasons, it’s crucial for parents to be vigilant in monitoring
exactly what their kids are doing online and on the phone. Social media
provides many great benefits but it also attracts those seeking to victimize
children. The bottom line, the best defense is to be proactive and prevent such
would be criminals from gaining access to our children.”
Online
Tips for Parents:
1. With summer right around the corner,
and extra time of their hands, some kids will undoubtedly be spending more time
on the computer. Parents need to monitor that computer usage, including time
spent online and the websites their children are visiting.
2. It is a good idea to keep the family
computer in a common area rather than in a child’s bedroom.
3. Parent should discuss with their
children what is appropriate to post online and what is not, such as
information about themselves and pictures.
4. Parents should know what other access
their children may have to a computer such as the library and friends’ houses.
5. Parent must encourage their children
to let them know if they are approached by a stranger online, someone they do
not know, especially if they are scared or confused.
For more information, parents can visit
http://www.projectsafechildhood.govnetsmartz411.com.
This case was brought as part of Project
Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child
sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of
Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s
Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood
marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and
prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to
identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood,
please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The sentencing is the culmination of an
investigation on the part of special agents of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, Cyber Crime Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in
Charge Christopher M. Piehota; the West Seneca Police Department, under the
direction of Chief Edward Gehen; the Cheektowaga Police Department, under the
direction of Chief David Zack; and the Niagara County Sheriff’s Department,
under the direction of Sheriff James Votour. CEOS Attorney Keith Becker
assisted in the prosecution of the case.
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