Ex-DEA agent in South Texas gets 7 years for child porn

Prosecutors say an ex-Drug Enforcement Administration special agent in South Texas must serve seven years in federal prison for downloading child pornography.

James Patrick Burke was sentenced Thursday in Houston.

The 39-year-old Burke, formerly based in McAllen, pleaded guilty last June to access with intent to view child pornography.

Burke was charged following a 2015 search of his McAllen home, where law enforcement officers confiscated two computers.

A criminal complaint says the case involved viewing and downloading videos of children having sex with adults.

Burke, who’s from Massachusetts, had been with the DEA’s office in McAllen for two years when he was arrested.

He was freed on bond but taken into custody following Thursday’s sentencing.

Burke was also ordered to pay $4,000 in restitution to a known victim.

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