DALLAS—Christian C. Winchel, 49, of Rockwall, Texas, appeared today before U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater and pleaded guilty to multiple child pornography offenses involving prepubescent child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Specifically, Winchel pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography; one count of transporting and shipping child pornography; and one count of possession of prepubescent child pornography. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 70 years in federal prison and a $750,000 fine. Winchel has been in custody since his arrest on a related federal criminal complaint in early February 2015. Sentencing is set for January 15, 2016, before Judge Fitzwater.

Winchell admitted he has downloaded child pornography since approximately 1994. He thought he would be able to trade child pornography with others if he produced his own material. He had access to an 18-month-old child, and took sexually explicit photos of himself with the child. He also admitted using a spy cam to capture minor girls using the bathroom when they were in his home and a nanny cam to capture minor girls in various stages of undress in his home.

Winchell moved to Rockwall from Indiana in 2013, transporting the videos he had recorded of minor girls from Indiana to Texas. He admitted that when children visited for sleepovers at his home in Rockwall, he filmed himself engaging in sexually explicit activity while in proximity of the minor children who were asleep.

Law enforcement executed a search warrant at his home in February 2015 and seized several media items. The investigation revealed that as of August 20, 2015, there were 2700 images and videos of child pornography contained on the media examined. Through this forensic analysis, law enforcement has determined that some of the images and a video, involving an eight-year-old minor victim, were produced just over one year ago, in late July 2014. Law enforcement has found evidence that Winchel produced child pornography and images and videos of five minor victims.

Anyone who knows of someone who may have been victimized in this case is asked to contact the FBI at 972-559-5000.

The FBI’s Dallas Child Exploitation Task Force is conducting the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Camille Sparks is in charge of the prosecution.