Spring, Texas Man Charged With Federal Child Abuse Charges Involving Minors in California

A Texas man has been charged federally with multiple counts of child abuse. Thomas Henry Lopez, 49, of Spring, Texas, was indicted by a federal grand jury, according to an official announcement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California. Lopez faces two counts of child sexual exploitation, one count of allegedly distributing explicit visual depictions of minors, and another count of transmitting obscene material to a minor.

The indictment, as detailed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, alleges that between June and July of this year, Lopez contacted minors in California via TikTok, posing as a 12-year-old boy. He then allegedly contacted them via text messages and JusTalk, an encrypted app. Court documents from the investigation indicate that Lopez requested explicit images and videos from the victims and sent them inappropriate content, including images of himself.

Local and federal agencies, including the FBI and the Central California Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, led the investigation, with specific mention of the Kingsburg Police Department’s involvement. Investigators traced the illegal Internet connections back to Lopez’s home and workplace, and confirmed his identity. Lopez, a chief well engineer for an unnamed oil and gas company, was arrested by the FBI on Sept. 3 while he was traveling to Singapore on business. Searches of his home resulted in the seizure of numerous electronic devices.

Lopez is scheduled to appear before a federal judge in Houston, Texas, today. If convicted, he faces multiple sentences, a mandatory minimum of 15 years and up to 30 years for the child exploitation charges, and five to 20 years for the distribution of explicit material charge. The transmission of obscene material charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years. Like all of the defendants, Lopez is presumed innocent until proven guilty. The case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.