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Hammond Man Guilty of Receiving Child Exploitation Materials
A 25-year-old man from Hammond, Louisiana, has been found guilty of receiving materials involving the sexual exploitation of minors. Joseph Authement pleaded guilty to the crime on December 18, 2025, in a federal court in New Orleans.
According to court documents, Authement used his Apple iPhone to download and purchase child sex abuse materials using the Telegram messaging app. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents obtained a search warrant for Authement’s phone and located images and videos depicting the sexual exploitation of minors.
Authement faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 20 years in prison, as well as a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain to the defendant or twice the gross loss to any person of the offense. He also faces a minimum of five years of supervised release and up to life after his release from prison.
The 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 U.S. government. The project 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.
Authement is scheduled to be sentenced on March 19, 2026, before United States District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo. He must also pay a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office would like to acknowledge the assistance of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Rio Grande Valley Child Exploitation Investigations Task Force in bringing this case to justice. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba, Chief of the Financial Crimes Unit.
Joseph Authement’s case is a stark reminder of the dangers of child sex abuse materials and the importance of holding perpetrators accountable. As a nation, we must continue to work together to combat this epidemic and protect our children from exploitation.
Key Facts
- State: Louisiana
- Category: Sex Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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