SAMUEL C. THOMPSON, 34, of Grass Valley, is headed to federal prison for 10 years and four months after pleading guilty to receipt of child pornography and attempting to use the internet to entice a minor for sex. U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. handed down the sentence today in Sacramento, marking the end of a years-long investigation into Thompson’s predatory online behavior.
Court documents show Thompson used peer-to-peer file-sharing software between August 2012 and March 2013 to download child pornography. He was charged in case 2:13-cr-273-GEB and pleaded guilty in May 2016. That investigation was led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in San Francisco and Northern California, spotlighting the agency’s ongoing push to dismantle digital networks of child exploitation.
Even as Thompson awaited sentencing in the child pornography case, he struck again—this time targeting a minor directly. In 2016, while on supervised pretrial release, he posted an online ad seeking a “younger lover.” An undercover detective with the Placer County Sheriff’s Office responded, posing as a 13-year-old. Thompson arranged to meet the “girl” at a park in Auburn for a sexual encounter. He was arrested on arrival, charged in case 2:16-cr-232-GEB with attempted online enticement of a minor.
The FBI and Placer County Sheriff’s Office jointly investigated the enticement case. Assistant Special Agent in Charge Tom Osborne made it clear: “Thompson continued to pose as a threat to minors by attempting to contact a teen for sex while awaiting sentencing for child pornography charges.” The brazen move underscored the persistent danger posed by offenders who exploit technology to target children.
Ryan L. Spradlin, Special Agent in Charge of HSI, emphasized that law enforcement cannot arrest its way out of the crisis of online child exploitation. “The real key to combatting online sexual predators is teaching parents and their children about the dangers of online predators and where to go for help,” Spradlin said. HSI continues to collaborate with federal, state, and local agencies across Northern California to intercept predators before they strike.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew G. Morris and brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a DOJ initiative launched in 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation. The program combines federal, state, and local efforts to identify, apprehend, and prosecute offenders—and to rescue victims. For more information on internet safety resources, visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.
Related Federal Cases
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- Novato Man Patrick Harvey Gets 84 Months for Child Porn Charges · California
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Key Facts
- State: California
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Sex Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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