Man involved in valley child porn ring pleads guilty in federal court
A Las Vegas photographer connected to a child pornography ring in the Coachella Valley pleaded guilty in federal court Monday in connection to a child sexual exploitation conspiracy.
William Clyde Thompson, 58, of Las Vegas pleaded guilty to child exploitation enterprise, sexual exploitation of a child, conspiracy to produce child pornography, distribution of child pornography, conspiracy to distribute child pornography, and possession of child pornography. He was previously indicted in September 2013 in Nevada and in 2015 in Arizona.
According to the Department of Justice, posed as a professional modeling photographer and alternative sports sponsor to lure children on the promise of sponsorships. In November 2011, Thompson took sexually explicit photos and videos of a 10-year-old boy. After his first arrest, Las Vegas police found over 10,000 files of child sexual exploitation photos and videos.
Thompson was arrested along with John David Yoder, who was working as a special education aid at Desert Hot Springs High School at the time, and Erick Alan Monsivais of Los Angeles on Jan. 30, 2015.
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According to the three-justice panel’s brief, Yoder met Thompson through a website called “boylover.org,” then met with Thompson at his Las Vegas home, where Thompson was under house arrest, awaiting trial on federal child pornography charges.
Yoder assisted Thompson in breaking off his ankle bracelet monitor and the pair traveled back to Yoder’s Desert Hot Springs home, where Yoder was living with an 11-year-old victim, the brief states.
Deputy District Attorney William Robinson identified Yoder as the ringleader, asserting that “Mr. Yoder’s home was a lion’s den.”
After Thompson moved in, the men began frequenting a local skate park, where they met with two other victims, both also around 10 or 11 years old, according to the brief.
When Thomspon was arrested in 2015, digital devices belonging to Thompson recovered by law enforcement contained over one million images that ranged from child erotica to child pornography of several victims.
Yoder was convicted in early 2016 and sentenced to 24 years in state prison.
As for Thompson, United States District Judge Jennifer A. Dorsey scheduled a sentencing hearing for May 28, 2019.
Both the Nevada U.S. Attorney District Nicholas A. Trutanich and FBI Special Agent in Charge Aaron C. Rouse jointly recommended Thompson be sentenced to 354 months in prison with a lifetime term of supervised release. He has also agreed to pay full restitution to his victims.
If you have information regarding William Clyde Thompson, contact the nearest FBI field office or local law enforcement. To remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at (702) 385-5555 or visit www.crimestoppersofnv.com, or contact the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) by calling the 24-hour hotline at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678) or by making a report at www.cybertipline.com.
