Federal officials announced a series of child sexual exploitation cases Tuesday, including four complaints filed against Southern California men accused of “horrific” crimes, according to a report from NBC Los Angeles.
The cases, recently filed in the Central District of California, allege the victimization of minors – including by convicted sex offenders – and charge a range of crimes that include:
The federal child sex abuse cases announced yesterday are part of Project Safe Childhood, the Justice Department’s “longstanding initiative to combat the ongoing epidemic of child exploitation crimes.”
“Protecting our children from sexual exploitation is some of the most important work my office does,” United States Attorney Martin Estrada said during Tuesday’s announcement. “For years, we have vigorously prosecuted child sexual predators, and we have only increased those efforts in recent times. To those who would seek to victimize our youth, let me be clear: We will use every tool in our arsenal to bring you to justice and thereby stop you from causing further irreparable harm to others.”
“The various cases being announced today are a reminder of the constant threat of sexual extortion minors face, as well as the persistent demand for child pornography,” FBI Assistant Director in Charge Donald Alway, who runs the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office, said. “Whether an offender sexually abuses a child in person or online, or continues to exploit children by producing or sharing images of sexual abuse, the FBI and our partners will continue to seek justice for innocent victims by holding offenders accountable.”
“[Homeland Security Investigations] HSI Los Angeles is committed to removing sexual predators from our streets and working aggressively to hold them accountable for their heinous actions,” added HSI Acting Special Agent in Charge, Eddy Wang.
In total, nine defendants were charged with child exploitation offenses. The four Southern California suspects – reportedly from Long Beach, Hollywood, Van Nuys, and Santa Clarita – were listed in the U.S. Attorney’s Office press release:
The criminal complaint charges Ivan Lozano, a 36-year-old resident of Long Beach, with enticing a minor victim to commit sexual acts and possession of child pornography. Over the course of nearly two years, starting when the victim was 14, Lozano allegedly encouraged and enticed a girl a residing in Tanzania to repeatedly send him videos and photos of a sexual nature using the WhatsApp social media application. In October 2021, according to the complaint affidavit, Lozano traveled to Tanzania for the purpose of having sex with the girl, which he recorded on video. Lozano is currently a fugitive being sought by the FBI, which conducted the investigation in this matter together with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant United States Attorney Bruce Riordan from the Violent and Organized Crime Section is prosecuting case.
Dustan David Sheehan, 45, of Hollywood, surrendered last week after being named in a criminal complaint that accuses him of distributing child pornography and possession of and access with intent to view child pornography. In an August 2020 conversation with an undercover agent on the Kik internet messaging platform, Sheehan discussed his desire to meet and sexually abuse the undercover’s fictitious 9-year-old daughter, according to the complaint affidavit. Sheehan allegedly also shared sexually explicit images with the undercover agent. During a subsequent search of Sheehan’s residence, investigators FBI identified approximately 2,919 CSAM images and 21 CSAM videos on Sheehan’s digital devices, the affidavit states. During his initial appearance Friday afternoon, Sheehan was released on a $100,000 bond and was ordered to reside at a residential rehabilitation center. The FBI is investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorneys Jeffrey Chemerinsky and Hava Mirell from the Violent and Organized Crime Section are prosecuting this case.
Nathan Kicyla, 39, of Van Nuys, was accused of coercing a 10-year-old girl he encountered online to engage in sexually explicit conduct. An indictment charges Kicyla with sexual exploitation of a child for the purpose of producing a sexually explicit visual depiction, enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity, and commission of a felony offense involving a minor. If convicted, he would face a mandatory minimum of 35 years in federal prison. He is currently in federal custody on a supervised release violation stemming from a 2007 conviction of sexually exploitation of minors in the Eastern District of California.
Ian Nathanial Johnson, 36, of Santa Clarita, was arrested last week after prosecutors filed a criminal complaint charging him with distribution and possession of child pornography. The investigation into Johnson was launched after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received information that Johnson had uploaded child pornography to a Dropbox account, prosecutors said. During a search, agents seized Johnson’s digital devices and discovered over 200 images of child pornography and chats on Telegram, several of which included images of prepubescent children and children in bondage, the affidavit states. Johnson is scheduled to make his initial appearance on Wednesday in Los Angeles federal court.
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