Albuquerque man faces federal charges for possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material

ALBUQUERQUE - An Albuquerque man is facing federal charges for knowingly possessing and distributing child sexual abuse material, including images and videos of prepubescent children.

According to court records, in August 2025, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Albuquerque began investigating Julian Alcantar Rodriguez, 35, who was linked to multiple reports of online child sexual exploitation spanning from October 2021 to July 2025. The activity involved numerous social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Google, and investigators identified Alcantar as the individual behind the accounts.

On January 22, 2026, HSI executed a search warrant at Alcantar's Southwest Albuquerque residence and recovered Alcantar's cellphone, which contained numerous images and videos of child sexual abuse material.

Alcantar is charged with distribution and possession of child pornography. He will remain in custody pending trial, which has not been scheduled. If convicted of the current charges, Alcantar faces five to 20 years in prison.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Ryan G. McRae, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations - El Paso, made the announcement today.

Homeland Security Investigations - Albuquerque investigated this case with assistance from the New Mexico Department of Justice and Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The United States Attorney's Office for the District of New Mexico is prosecuting this case 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 U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood 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, please visit Justice.gov/PSC.

A complaint or indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.