Stone County Sex Offender Sentenced for Child Pornography

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - A Galena, Mo., man who is a registered sex offender was sentenced in federal court yesterday for receiving and distributing child pornography.

Steven Vincent Sanchez, 56, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to 200 months in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Sanchez to spend 15 years on supervised release following incarceration.

On April 22, 2025, Sanchez pleaded guilty to one count of receipt and distribution of child pornography. Sanchez has prior felony convictions for statutory sodomy in the second degree and loitering within 500 feet of a public park, and has been required to register as a sex offender.

According to court records, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received a CyberTipline Report after the file sharing service Dropbox discovered a video file containing suspected child pornography. Investigators linked the file to Sanchez and executed a search warrant at Sanchez's residence in Galena, Mo., on Aug. 7, 2023. Investigators seized several electronic devices and found 234 images and one video depicting child pornography.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie L. Wan. It was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force, and the Stone County, Mo., Sheriff's Office.

Project Safe Childhood

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."