DENVER – Rande Brian Isabella, 60, of Hubbard, Ohio, will spend the next 216 months – 18 years – in federal prison for preying on a 14-year-old Colorado girl. U.S. District Court Judge Christine M. Arguello handed down the sentence late yesterday, followed by 20 years of supervised release. Isabella was convicted last October after an 11-day jury trial, facing charges of coercion and enticement of a minor, and attempted production of child pornography. The jury acquitted him on two other counts, but the evidence was damning enough to secure a lengthy term.
The case, investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), revealed a calculated campaign of grooming. Between September and December 2013, Isabella relentlessly pursued the girl through phone calls and online chats, lying about his age and escalating the conversations towards sexual content. He successfully manipulated her into sending him a nude photograph – a victory he celebrated by continuing to solicit more explicit images.
Isabella didn’t stop at simply obtaining the photo. He presented himself as the girl’s “boyfriend” and even suggested she move to Ohio to be with him. A forensic analysis of Isabella’s digital footprint painted a chilling picture of premeditation. Shortly after initial contact, he obsessively researched the girl online, scouring her Facebook profile, studying her friends, and even tracking her participation in middle school track events. This wasn’t random; it was a targeted, predatory effort.
When the girl’s mother discovered the disturbing conversations after finding her daughter’s phone, she immediately contacted law enforcement. HSI agents swiftly moved to investigate, obtaining and executing a search warrant at Isabella’s Ohio home. The raid yielded his phone and two computers, both brimming with evidence of his crimes – the illicit communications, the saved photographs of the minor, and proof of his obsessive online stalking.
But the depravity didn’t end with this single victim. Evidence presented at trial revealed Isabella had also communicated with three other minor females and possessed nude images of them, highlighting a pattern of predatory behavior. “These folks are the worst kind of predators,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Bob Troyer. “But thanks to HSI and our elite prosecutors, they learn as Mr. Isabella did that there are another class of predators above them in the food chain.”
“The prison sentences for those who produce child pornography are appropriately lengthy, such as this 18-year federal prison sentence for Rande Isabella,” added John Eisert, acting special agent in charge of HSI Denver. “HSI has a very active Operation Predator program to identify and investigate those who sexually exploit children, and to rescue the victims of these predators.” The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alecia Riewerts and Celeste Rangel, sending a clear message that those who prey on children will face the full force of the law.
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Key Facts
- State: Colorado
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Sex Crimes|Cybercrime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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