L.A. man sentenced to 40 years in prison for convincing kids to create sexually explicit content
A Los Angeles man was sentenced to 40 years in prison for using social media to meet and entice children into producing sexually explicit content.
From 2019 to August 2021, Mark David Wallin, 44, of Del Rey, used the internet and apps like Snapchat to meet pre-teen children in the U.S. and abroad, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
He would develop romantic relationships with them and eventually persuade them to engage in sexually explicit conduct through video chat, which he screen-captured and saved, prosecutors said.
After his victims sent the explicit content, Wallin would sometimes demand additional explicit images and videos from them.
If the children did not cooperate, he would threaten to publish or expose the pictures and videos they had previously sent him.
In one instance, Wallin convinced a child who was around 9-10 years old to send sexually explicit images and videos of himself through Snapchat, prosecutors said.
In his plea agreement, Wallin admitted to coercing at least four additional victims – ranging in age from 12 to 16 years old – to produce child pornography. He also admitted to possessing around 200 files containing child sexual abuse material.
Wallin has been in federal custody since July 2022. In September 2024, he pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography and one count of enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity.
On May 16, he was sentenced to 480 months (40 years) in federal prison. The judge who presided over the hearing said Wallin committed 'cruel and relentless' crimes against children and that his conduct was 'highly sexualized sadomasochistic conduct that no child should know of, let alone be exposed to.'
A restitution hearing is scheduled for August 13. The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Pennsylvania men accused in scheme that swiped $80M in U.S. Treasury checks
(WHTM) — Four Pennsylvania men are facing charges in connection with the theft of over $80 million in U.S. Treasury checks. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced Wednesday charges against four men from the Philadelphia area: Tauheed Tucker, 23, and Saahir Irby, 27, both of Philadelphia; Cory Scott, 25, of Ardmore; and Alexander Telewoda, 25, of Clifton Heights. The men are facing felony conspiracy to steal government funds, theft of government funds, and mail theft charges. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Irby and Tucker were working as mail processing clerks for the U.S. Postal Service between June 2023 and Sept. 2024. They are accused of intercepting and swiping thousands of envelopes containing U.S. Treasury checks from mail sorting machines at the USPS Philadelphia processing center. The men then allegedly sold them to Scott and Telewoda, who then resold the checks on Telegram. They were mailed to buyers across the country who attempted to cash them. In total, $80 million in checks were allegedly stolen, $11 million of which were cashed. Download the abc27 News+ app on your Roku, Amazon Fire TV Stick, and Apple TV devices If convicted, Irby faces a maximum sentence of 25 years in federal prison and the remaining men face up to 20 years. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
DC mother found guilty of murder for death of 16-month-old daughter
WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — A D.C. woman was found guilty of murder Wednesday in the death of her 16-month-old daughter in March 2017. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office (USAO) for the District of Columbia, 39-year-old Faneisha Scott was found guilty of first-degree murder, first-degree cruelty to children and second-degree cruelty to children. FCPD: Ex-Youth summer program leader charged with secretly recording minors Evidence stated that around 2:45 p.m. on March 21, 2017, Scott's friend- and her daughter Rhythm Fields' godmother- went to Scott's home in the 5400 block of C St. SE. The friend's 8-year-old child asked to play with Rhythm, but the friend found Rhythm in her playpen 'unresponsive and cold.' Scott went outside and flagged down a mail carrier, who called 911 and went back into Scott's apartment with her. The mail carrier saw 'Rhythm on the couch, lifeless. The child's body was cold, her body was stiff, and her eyes were fixed,' the USAO said. The mail carrier remained on the phone with 911 until two others entered to give Rhythm CPR. The USAO said that one of these individuals was an experienced former firefighter who immediately recognized that Rhythm was dead. Scott told first responders that she hadn't had any contact with Rhythm since 9 a.m. 2 teens charged with 9 armed carjackings, robbery in DC; police search for more suspects The D.C. Medical Examiner's Office did an autopsy on Rhythm's body and ruled in February of 2018 that she had been killed and that her cause of death had been multiple blunt force injuries. The Medical Examiner's Office listed the following injuries: Contusions and abrasions of the head, neck, torso and extremities Subdural hemorrhage Cerebral edema, subarachnoid hemorrhage and acute hypoxia-ischemia Retinal and optic nerve sheath hemorrhage Twenty-three bilateral rib fractures, showing both healing and new fractures Scott's sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 29, 2025. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
DC man charged after distributing multiple videos of child pornography, officials say
WASHINGTON () — A 28-year-old man from D.C. is facing federal charges after he sent multiple videos of child pornography to an undercover police officer, the U.S. Attorney's Office (USAO) detailed. On April 1, court documents state that the undercover officer was contacted by Zachary Silas Brandner on Jack'd, a dating app. His profile — under the username 'fart fetish' indicated they were 6'5″ and lived in Southwest D.C. After talking briefly on the app, the undercover officer messaged Silas via Telegram shortly after 11 a.m. Under the username 'Zboi29,' Silas said he was interested in 'infants up to 12' and asked the officer if he had kids. What to know about Trump's military parade in DC After a brief conversation, he forwarded a video that was just over five-and-a-half minutes long, showing an infant boy being assaulted by a man. Another video showed a young boy also being assaulted. The officer sent the information to the FBI, who launched an investigation into the person behind the account — later identified as Silas. In a later chat on Jack'd on May 20, he continued sending similarly provocative chats to the undercover officer, indicating his sexual interest in children. He was charged with two counts of Distribution of Child Pornography. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
