Damon Lechtenberg, Production of Child Pornography, Louisiana 2020

A disturbing case of child exploitation has come to light in Lake Charles, Louisiana, where a 46-year-old man has pleaded guilty to producing child pornography.

Damon Lechtenberg, a resident of Lake Charles, Louisiana, pleaded guilty to two counts of production of child pornography before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay.

According to the guilty plea, Lechtenberg admitted to filming a minor female using hidden cameras that he had placed in the minor's bedroom and bathroom.

In December of 2019, authorities learned of Lechtenberg's activities and obtained a search warrant. Law enforcement officers located multiple hidden cameras that had previously been hidden in the child's bedroom and bathroom.

Lechtenberg told officers that he placed the cameras in the bedroom and bathroom and filmed the minor while the minor was nude. A subsequent forensics review of the electronic devices seized from Lechtenberg revealed approximately 200 videos of the nude minor.

Lechtenberg will remain in custody until sentencing, which is set for July 16, 2020. At sentencing, he faces up to 60 years in prison, five years to life of supervised release, registration as a sex offender, and a $250,000 fine.

The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations and the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff's Office, with Assistant U.S. Attorney John Luke Walker prosecuting the case.

The case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdla/pr/lake-charles-man-pleads-guilty-two-counts-production-child-pornography