San Francisco man sentenced to more than 12 years in prison for child exploitation

FRESNO, Calif. - Sean Michael Hunt, 51, of San Francisco, was sentenced Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026, by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston to 12 years and seven months in prison for possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.

According to court documents, on May 17, 2010, Hunt pleaded guilty to receiving CSAM in Fresno. After serving his prison sentence, he relocated to San Francisco and began serving a lifetime term of supervised release. In March 2024, during a search of Hunt's residence, Hunt's probation officer found two laptops, three iPhones and one iPad. On the devices were more than 10,000 still images and 75 videos of CSAM. Hunt was charged with violating the conditions of his release and was additionally charged with possession of CSAM.

On Jan. 26, 2026, Hunt pleaded guilty to the violation of supervised release and to possession of CSAM.

Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Gappa prosecuted the cases.

This case was 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 U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 www.justice.gov/psc.