LOS ANGELES – A San Bernardino County woman was sentenced today to 480 months in federal prison for committing child sexual abuse material crimes, including that she obtained custody of an infant for the purpose of producing sexually explicit videos.
Stefani Kasey Marie Stevens, 31, of Yucaipa, was sentenced by United States District Judge Virginia A. Phillips, who scheduled a restitution hearing for July 31 in this case. Stevens will be placed on supervised release for the rest of her life upon her release from prison.
After a four-day bench trial, Judge Phillips in November 2022 found Stevens guilty of one count of obtaining custody of a minor with intent to produce child pornography, six counts of production of child pornography, one count of distribution of child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography.
From August 2019 to November 2019, law enforcement received information that two Kik online messaging application accounts later found to be associated with Stevens uploaded child sexual abuse material. Law enforcement also determined that a Google account associated with Stevens had uploaded seven sexually explicit images of the same victim, who was under the age of 12.
In November 2019, federal agents executed a search warrant at Stevens’ home. During subsequent interviews, Stevens admitted to making sexually explicit videos of herself performing oral sex on the infant victim and that she took eight to 10 nude photographs with a second victim under the age of 12.
Following the interviews, law enforcement accessed Stevens’ online accounts and learned that, the day before creating the sexually explicit videos of the infant in May 2019, Stevens and a like-minded user had online discussions about how Stevens was excited to take custody of the infant the next day so that she could create videos of herself engaging in sexual activity with the victim.
Law enforcement also learned that, in addition to the sexually explicit videos of the infant created in May 2019, Stevens took sexually explicit photographs of the infant in June 2019 and of a second victim under the age of 12 in October and November 2018, all of which she stored in an online account, along with hundreds of other child pornography images and videos.
“This defendant has been punished for acting out her vile sexual fantasies on two children – one of them an infant,” said United States Attorney Martin Estrada. “Sexual exploitation of children is intolerable, and my office will aggressively prosecute these horrific crimes. Today’s significant sentence is yet another example of my office’s determination to hold accountable those criminals whose abhorrent conduct causes immeasurable trauma upon those who are among the most vulnerable people in our district.”
“Individuals that victimize innocent children will be aggressively pursued and held accountable for the heinous offenses they commit,” said Eddy Wang, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Los Angeles Acting Special Agent in Charge. “This case and its prosecution should send a clear message, if you come after children, HSI and our partners will come after you.”
“The San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department appreciates the work of all the investigators and prosecuting attorneys who worked on behalf of the victims to obtain justice,” said the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department in a statement. “Anyone who suspects a child is being victimized is urged to contact their local law enforcement agency or child protective services.”
Source: Press Release
