A Las Vegas man was sentenced to 18 years and 4 months in prison, followed by 15 years of supervised release, for child sexual exploitation and possession of over 2,000 files of child sexual abuse material. Chief United States District Judge Andrew P. Gordon issued the sentence after the man was found guilty of exploiting a child under his care, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, "The defendant engaged in a pattern of activity involving the sexual exploitation of a young girl within his supervisory control and possessed CSAM depicting two children in his custody." U.S. Attorney Sigal Chattah emphasized the trauma caused to the children in the defendant's care and others whose abuse was found in his possession. The FBI and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department worked together to arrest and convict Daniel Lee Rhees. In the proceedings, evidence showed that Rhees had assaulted and produced child sexual abuse material involving a six-year-old girl he was related to, and also possessed abusive material of another four-year-old girl in his care. He had communicated with others over platforms like Kik and Session, even forming a group dubbed as "taboo parents."
On December 16, 2020, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Rhee's home, finding 1,803 images and 243 videos of child exploitation material. This investigation was part of Project Safe Childhood, a national initiative to combat child abuse. Rhee pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child pornography. He was ordered to register as a sex offender. The public can report tips to the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or tips.fbi.gov, as stated by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
