A Ventura County man, previously convicted of child sex offenses, has been indicted with 11 new charges relating to child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and sex trafficking of minors. Kai Whitney Sommers, 36, from Ventura, now faces allegations months after his release from state prison, as reported by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Released from a prior conviction, Sommers now is facing two counts of minor sex trafficking and various other charges, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Central District of California. These counts include the use of a facility of interstate commerce to entice a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity, producing, distributing, and possessing child pornography, and committing a felony involving a minor while registered as a sex offender.
Details from the document released by the U.S. Attorney's Office state that following his September 2021 conviction for statutory rape, Sommers was engaged in online conversations with minors with the intent to recruit them into sex work. Sommers, who had previously lured a minor from an online chat room, sexually assaulted his victim.
Sommers, currently in federal custody since June 26, is expected to be arraigned on July 15. If convicted of these recent charges, he faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years up to a possible life sentence in federal prison. The case is being investigated by the FBI and the Ventura Police Department, with Assistant United States Attorney Derek R. Flores leading the prosecution.
