Fort Stockton Man Sentenced to Over 157 Years in Prison

ALPINE Texas (KOSA) - Thomas Scott Perkins, from Fort Stockton, was sentenced to 157 years in prison for distributing and possessing child sexual abuse material.

On July 19, 2022, Perkins was found guilty by a federal jury sitting in Pecos of one count of distribution of child pornography and eight counts of possession of child pornography. Perkins has remained in federal custody since his arrest on September 14, 2020.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Homeland Security Investigations agents determined through investigation that Perkins was sharing child pornography online.

A search warrant was executed at Perkins’ residence and multiple hard drive devices were discovered that contained 95,316 images and 1,237 videos of child sexual abuse material.

“The sentence demonstrates the horrors of this type of crime, which we will continue to relentlessly pursue,” said U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff. “I want to express my deep gratitude to our law enforcement partners and dedicated prosecutors who worked to bring this defendant to justice.” “This lengthy sentence is a testament to the repugnant nature of child exploitation crimes, particularly the production of child pornography which only perpetuates the trauma endured by victims,” said Francisco Burrola, Special Agent in Charge, HSI El Paso. “HSI agents make it a top priority to protect vulnerable children from victimization by working with their law enforcement partners to investigate predators involved with the possession and distribution of child pornography and ensure they are held accountable for their heinous actions.”

You can read the original story reported by CBS7 here.