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Japanese Citizen Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison for Participating in International Child Pornography Ring
A Japanese citizen, Futoshi Tachino, 32, was sentenced to 17 years in prison and lifetime supervised release for conspiracy to advertise child pornography in Los Angeles, California.
In March 2011, Tachino pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to advertise child pornography. He was arrested in Chicago in July 2009. The sentencing is the result of an international investigation into the "Lost Boy" online bulletin board.
The Lost Boy bulletin board, according to court documents and proceedings, was dedicated to men who have a sexual interest in young boys and was established to provide a forum to trade child pornography. Federal authorities, working in conjunction with a coalition of international law enforcement agencies, shut down the Lost Boy bulletin board approximately three years ago.
As a result of the investigation, 16 named defendants, including Tachino, were charged in the United States and arrested for their roles in the bulletin board. To date, 15 defendants have pleaded guilty or have been convicted at trial, and one defendant died in custody. Approximately six more men have been charged with child molestation as a result of the investigation.
The investigation also led to the identification of 27 domestic victims of child abuse, some of whom were portrayed in images posted to the Lost Boy bulletin board. According to court documents and proceedings, law enforcement authorities discovered the Lost Boy bulletin board after receiving information from Eurojust, the judicial cooperation arm of the European Union.
Acting on the information from Europe, the FBI executed search warrants that led to the discovery of the Lost Boy network. Further investigation revealed that Lost Boy had 35 members, 16 of whom were U.S. nationals. Other members of the network were located in countries around the world, including Belgium, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Sex Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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