South Carolina Man Sentenced for Attempted Production of Child Pornography

SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced today that U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier has sentenced a Summerville, South Carolina, man convicted of Attempted Production of Child Pornography. The sentencing took place on June 15, 2026.

Robert DiOrio, age 36, was sentenced to 17.5 years in federal prison, five years of supervised release, and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $100. Upon release from federal prison, DiOrio must register as a sex offender.

DiOrio was indicted by a federal grand jury in August of 2024. He pleaded guilty on March 23, 2026.

DiOrio started a conversation on Reddit, a popular communication/posting website, with a person he believed was a 14-year-old girl. The conversation turned sexual, and he asked the 14-year-old girl to meet up hoping to have a sexual encounter with her. DiOrio arrived at the meeting location where he was arrested by law enforcement. All along, unbeknownst to him, DiOrio had been communicating with an undercover law enforcement officer.

This case was brought as part of an undercover operation designed to identify individuals in the community who are seeking to have sex with minors. The case was also brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the DOJ's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC), South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, Sioux Falls Police Department, Watertown Police Department, Tea Police Department, Rapid City Police Department, Minnehaha County Sheriff's Office, Lincoln County Sheriff's Office, and South Dakota Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth E. Ebert-Webb prosecuted the case.

DiOrio was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.