CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 31-year-old Corpus Christi resident has been ordered to federal prison for coercing a child via the internet in order to have sex with her, announced U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.
Steven Lopez pleaded guilty Nov. 8, 2021.
Today, U.S. District Court Judge Drew B. Tipton ordered him to serve a total of 151 months in federal prison. Lopez will also serve the rest of his life on supervised release following completion of his prison term, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet. In imposing the sentence, the court also heard evidence that Lopez continued to communicate with minors while awaiting further criminal proceedings. He must also register as a sex offender and pay restitution to identified victims.
In July 2019, law enforcement learned Lopez had sexually abused a minor and eventually apprehended him. At that time, they seized his cell phone which revealed that Lopez used social media to target a minor for the purpose of having sex. Lopez had also attempted to hide his criminal conduct by deleting certain messages. However, forensic analysis yielded multiple instances of incriminating content.
Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Corpus Christi Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Molly K. Smith and Dennis E. Robinson prosecuted the case, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section leads PSC, which marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and identifies and rescues victims. For more information about PSC, please visit DOJ’s PSC page. For more information about internet safety education, please visit the resources link on that page.