Suburban Chicago Man Sentenced to 12 Years in Federal Prison for Child Pornography and Sexual Conduct with a Minor

CHICAGO — A suburban Chicago man has been sentenced to 12 years in federal prison on charges of child pornography and traveling to engage in sexual conduct with a minor.

JEREMIAH HARRIS, 22, of Naperville, Ill., pleaded guilty in February to one count of receipt of child pornography and one count of traveling with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct.  U.S. District Judge Manish S. Shah imposed the prison term Wednesday and ordered that it be followed by eight years of court-supervised release.

The sentence was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Emmerson Buie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI.  The investigation was conducted by the FBI Chicago Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force, which includes the Cook County Sheriff’s Office, Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, and Chicago Police Department.  The Crystal Lake, Ill., Police Department and FBI Resident Agency in Waco, Texas, provided valuable assistance.  The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly L. Guzman.

The child pornography conviction involved sexually explicit photographs and videos that Harris repeatedly requested from a 17-year-old boy in 2020.  Harris admitted in a plea agreement that the boy sent the photos and videos of himself to Harris in exchange for $2,000.  Harris also admitted in the plea agreement that he requested and received other images of child pornography from two other minor boys, and he attempted to entice one of them to engage in sexual activity.

The travel charge pertains to Harris traveling in 2019 from Dallas, Texas, to Orlando, Fla., to engage in sexually explicit conduct with a 15-year-old boy.  Harris admitted in the plea agreement that he directed the boy to meet him in a public bathroom, where Harris sexually assaulted him.

If you believe you are a victim of sexual exploitation, you are encouraged to contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children by logging on to https://www.missingkids.org/ or calling 1-800-843-5678.  The service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.