Anthony M. Westemeyer, Child Sex Exploitation, Illinois 2021

Nebo, IL – Grimy Times

Three Pike County men have been charged with the heinous crime of child sex exploitation. Anthony M. Westemeyer, Bobby J. Warner, and Michael Wallace, all of Nebo, Illinois, were indicted by a federal grand jury on September 9, 2021, for causing a minor victim to engage in sexually explicit conduct, which was recorded and stored on a computer in May 2021.

The indictment, unsealed on the day Westemeyer was arraigned in federal court, alleges that the three men coerced the minor into participating in the explicit conduct, which was then stored on a computer. If convicted, the men face a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years’ imprisonment, followed by a life term of supervised release. Each charge also carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment.

Wallace was arrested on September 10, 2021, in Nebo, while Warner was apprehended in Pittsfield, Illinois, on September 13, 2021. United States Magistrate Judge Tom Schanzle-Haskins ordered that both men be detained pending trial at a related hearing on September 16, 2021. The U.S. Marshals Service lodged a detainer for Westemeyer, who is currently in the custody of the Pike County Sheriff.

The investigation into the crime involved multiple agencies, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations; the Illinois Attorney General’s Office; the Pike County Sheriff’s Office; and the Pike County State’s Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah E. Seberger and Tanner K. Jacobs are representing the government in the prosecution.

Anyone with information connected to this investigation is urged to call the Department of Homeland Security Investigations at (217) 547-2100. Members of the public are reminded that an indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

This case is being prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. The project marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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