El Paso Standard

An official formerly serving as a city commissioner in West Covina, California, was sentenced to over 12 years in prison for child exploitation violations. Herbert Redholtz received his sentence on March 17 in the Central District of California. His offenses included possession, distribution, and receipt of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Alongside his prison term, Redholtz will face lifetime supervision and is required to pay restitution to victims.

Redholtz's case was brought to light following an investigation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Los Angeles Child Exploitation Investigations Task Force. The investigation began after a tip-off from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children led agents to obtain a federal search warrant for Redholtz's email account. This search revealed more than 950 images and videos containing suspected CSAM involving children.

ICE HSI has positioned itself as a global leader in combating child exploitation, aiming to protect children from those involved in producing and distributing such materials. The agency encourages the public to report suspected cases of child exploitation through its Tip Line or via the Cyber Tipline managed by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.

For further information about ICE HSI’s efforts against child exploitation, individuals can follow their activities on X at @HSILosAngeles. Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security runs Know2Protect, a national campaign designed to educate various community members about preventing online child sexual exploitation. More resources are available on Know2Protect.gov and through their social media platforms.