Chicago Man Sentenced to 22 Years in Federal Prison for Surreptitiously Recording Boys in YMCA Locker Rooms
Chicago Man Sentenced to 22 Years in Federal Prison for Surreptitiously Recording Boys in YMCA Locker Rooms (Chicago, IL) — A Chicago man has been sentenced to 22 years in federal prison for surreptitiously recording thousands of videos of nude boys inside YMCA lockers rooms.
For approximately two decades, Michael Porter surreptitiously recorded videos of nude boys inside the locker room at three Chicago-area YMCAs, where Porter was a member. Porter placed a video-recording device inside of a bag and then strategically placed the bag on the floor of the locker rooms. Porter sexually abused at least one of the boys, capturing the abuse on video.
During the investigation law enforcement seized from Porter six recording devices, seven cameras, 30 USB drives, hundreds of cassette tapes and DVDs, and two laptops. Law enforcement discovered in his possession 46,563 images and 44,553 videos depicting child pornography, including approximately 2,245 videos produced by Porter.
Porter, 58, pleaded guilty last year to federal charges of production, receipt, and possession of child pornography. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Sara L. Ellis on Thursday ordered Porter to pay $63,500 in restitution to victims.
The sentence was announced by Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Robert W. “Wes” Wheeler, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. Valuable assistance was provided by the Cook County Sheriff’s Police Department.
“Michael Porter was a prolific manufacturer and collector of child pornography,” Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kristen Totten and Elly M. Peirson argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “Regardless of whether these images will ever surface again, the victims will live with the trauma imposed upon them by the defendant for the rest of their lives.”
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 www.missingkids.com
or by calling 1-800-843-5678. The service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Chicago Man Sentenced to 22 Years in Federal Prison for Surreptitiously Recording Boys in YMCA Locker Rooms
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