El Pasoan Arrested on Child Porn Charges
EL PASO, Tx – Agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arrest a West El Paso man on child pornography charges.
According to HSI officials 34-year-old Andrew Hansen was arrested Jan. 20, after HSI special agents executed two federal search warrants at his home along the 900 block of Mesa Hills Drive and another residence in the 1000 block of Mesa Hills Drive.
Special agents assigned to the HSI El Paso Cyber Crimes Group arrested Hansen and charged him with receiving and possessing material involving the sexual exploitation of minors.
Federal officials say that initial forensic analysis of items seized by HSI agents revealed numerous illicit images involving the sexual exploitation of children.
Hansen’s preliminary and detention hearing is set in U.S. Magistrate Judge David Guaderrama’s court, however no date or time was released.
In a news release, HSI officials said the arrest was part of an investigation known as ‘Operation Predator.’ Officials said that the operation is a nationwide ICE HSI initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel overseas to engage in sex with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders, and child sex traffickers.
The statement also included the following information for the pubic:
ICE HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2ICE or its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators.
