Mexico court confirms 15-year sentence in case involving images of minors
Original reporting: ZETA Tijuana
What happened
A federal appellate court confirmed Jesús N.'s 15-year sentence in a Baja California Sur case involving the storage and distribution of sexually explicit images of minors. The ruling also upheld a 2,000-day fine and victim compensation.
Reporting and context
A federal appellate court in Mexico confirmed a 15-year prison sentence against Jesús N. for storing, distributing and exchanging sexually explicit images involving minors through social media, according to ZETA Tijuana. The ruling by the Collegiate Court of Appeal for the Twelfth Circuit also upheld a fine equivalent to 2,000 days and compensation for victims.
ZETA Tijuana reported that the investigation began in December 2022 and concerned conduct allegedly recorded between March 10 and Dec. 21 of that year. The source said Jesús N., who was 40 at the time and lived in La Paz, Baja California Sur, used a Facebook account to store and send a catalog of digital images involving at least 20 children and adolescents. Court evidence identified 11 cases involving explicit sexual acts and six involving sexualized images of bodily exposure, along with messages of a sexual nature involving minors.
The case began after the owner of a computer lent to Jesús N. saw open conversations on the device and reported them to authorities. Baja California Sur's State Cyber Police and the Federal Ministerial Police investigated the accounts and electronic addresses, and Jesús N. was later taken to the La Paz penitentiary. The appellate court rejected the defense argument that the evidence had been obtained through an unlawful intrusion into digital privacy and left the sentence in force.