Detroit Man Sentenced to 14+ Years in Prison for Coercion, Enticement, and Child Pornography Charges

TOLEDO, Ohio - A 40-year-old man has been sentenced to federal prison for arranging to engage in illicit sexual conduct with purported minor children and for Child Sexual Abuse Materials (CSAM) charges.

Brett Tooman, of Detroit, Michigan, was sentenced to 174 months (14.5 years) in prison by U.S. District Judge James R. Knepp II, after pleading guilty to:

• Coercion or Enticement of a Minor
• Travel with Intent to Engage in Illicit Sexual Conduct
• Transportation of Child Pornography, or CSAM
• Receipt and Distribution of Child Pornography, or CSAM

Tooman was also ordered to serve 25 years of supervised release after imprisonment, pay $37,500 in restitution, and to pay $5,000 toward the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, which was established in 2015 to provide justice for victims of trafficking.

According to court documents, law enforcement was investigating suspected Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) activity on an online platform and Tooman was subsequently identified. Tooman was communicating online with an undercover agent who purportedly had minor children. Tooman expressed a strong desire to meet with the children in person to engage in sexual activity. After explicit and graphic communications with the undercover agent, Tooman agreed to meet the undercover agent and the purported children at a pre-arranged location. There, Tooman was immediately taken into custody by law enforcement officers.

The investigation was led by the FBI Toledo Resident Agency's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force and the Toledo Police Department.

Assistant United States Attorneys Sara Al-Sorghali and Alissa Sterling led the prosecution for the Northern District of Ohio.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. The initiative is led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices throughout the country and marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit justice.gov/PSC.

To report child exploitation, please visit cybertipline.orgLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link., or call 1-800-843-5678, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.