Convicted of prolific ‘sextortion’ of minors, man gets 65-year prison term
A Sparks resident was sentenced Friday to 65 years in prison for sexually exploiting multiple minors and advertising and distributing child sexual abuse material that he coerced minors into producing.
James Patrick Burns, 55, of Sparks, “sextorted” multiple minors online via Omegle, Snapchat, TikTok and Mega, by threatening minors into producing the material and posting it on dark web forums, according to a Department of Justice news release.
According to court documents and evidence, between 2018 and 2021, Burns was the most prolific creator of illegal content on these forums. He victimized more than 100 children, many of whom have yet to be identified.
Burns’s offenses came to the attention of law enforcement when the mother of one of his victims saw threats on the victim’s phone and reported what she saw to the police, according to the DOJ.
Burns was also ordered to pay $82,655.92 in restitution and $21,000 in assessments under the Amy, Vicky, and Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act.
On March 5, a federal jury convicted Burns of eight counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, eight counts of coercion and enticement of a minor, and one count each of advertising, receiving, distributing and possessing child pornography.
Burns was already a registered sex offender, and the jury also convicted him of committing certain specified felony offenses while required to register as a sex offender.
Contact Marvin Clemons at mclemons@reviewjournal.com.