Lazaro Segundo-Vazquez, Receipt of Child Pornography, Texas 2024

A chilling tale of child exploitation has unfolded in South Texas, with a 20-year-old Edinburg resident, Lazaro Segundo-Vazquez, pleading guilty to the receipt of child pornography.

According to court documents, Segundo-Vazquez admitted to receiving over 1,800 images and video files containing child sexual abuse material. These disturbing images and videos were obtained via a third-party messaging application on his cellular phone.

The investigation, led by the Homeland Security Investigations – Rio Grande Valley Child Exploitation Task Force, began with an alert from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Authorities discovered that a residence in Edinburg was uploading child pornography to a Google account, which ultimately led them to Segundo-Vazquez.

Segundo-Vazquez’s guilty plea reveals a devastating reality: he received child sexual abuse material, including videos and images of prepubescent children and toddlers. These disturbing images depicted children engaged in sexual acts with adults and other children. Furthermore, he uploaded several images of child sexual abuse material to a Google account.

As a result of his plea, Segundo-Vazquez faces up to 20 years in prison. U.S. District Judge Ricardo H. Hinojosa will impose sentencing on August 18. Until then, Segundo-Vazquez will remain in custody.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched by the DOJ in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section lead PSC, which marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and identifies and rescues victims.

The public is encouraged to visit the DOJ’s PSC page for more information about PSC and internet safety education.

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