An Evansville man was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison. A camera was found in a restaurant women's restroom. Samuel Kirkwood, 36, was also ordered to serve lifetime supervised release.
The Evansville Police Department brought the case back into local view Wednesday. A camera was found in a restaurant women's restroom. The FBI investigated the case, and federal prosecutors took it forward.
Federal Case Included Images Of Minors
According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana, Kirkwood pleaded guilty to producing and attempting to produce child sexual abuse material, as well as possessing it. He was arrested May 11, 2023, in connection with a state-level child-exploitation offense, and investigators later found multiple images depicting nude minors on two phones seized from him.
Photo analysis identified Kirkwood’s hand in an image depicting the sexual abuse of a minor female, prosecutors said. At sentencing, he admitted photographing a 10-year-old girl while he was caring for her; U.S. District Judge Richard L. Young imposed the sentence on November 10, 2025.
Lifetime Supervision Follows Prison Term
Kirkwood’s 15-year federal sentence will be followed by lifetime supervised release. The prosecution was brought through Project Safe Childhood, a Justice Department initiative that coordinates federal, state and local efforts to investigate child exploitation and identify victims.
The Southern District of Indiana says victims of child sexual exploitation should contact their local police department. The provided Kirkwood release does not identify the victim in the case.
According to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, reports of online enticement increased by more than 300% and exceeded 186,800 in 2023.
Evansville Has Seen Similar Bathroom-Recording Cases
The hidden-camera detail echoes an earlier Evansville federal case. In 2013, the FBI reported that Floyd Patrick Williams received 15 years after admitting he attempted to produce child pornography by following young boys into library bathrooms and recording them.
That earlier investigation also involved the Evansville Police Department, the FBI Cyber Crimes Task Force and the Justice Department's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section. Kirkwood’s case is the latest reminder that a single discovery inside a private space can trigger a much wider digital investigation.
