Dearborn Man sentenced to 17 Years In Prison for Sexually Exploiting a Child

DETROIT – A Dearborn resident was sentenced to 17 years in federal prison for sexually exploiting a child, United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced.

Ison was joined in the announcement by Cheyvoryea Gibson, FBI Special Agent in Charge, Detroit Field Division.

Haitham Sami Bazzi, 28, was sentenced by United States District Judge Terrence Berg. 

According to court documents, Bazzi met the 16-year-old victim in an online dating application in the summer of 2021. Bazzi engaged in sex acts with the victim, provided the child methamphetamine, and recorded the sexual exploitation. A concerned adult reported Bazzi to the Dearborn Police after Bazzi showed him child sexually abusive material on Bazzi’s phone. The Dearborn Police executed a search warrant and recovered multiple devices from Bazzi’s residence, which police then turned over to the FBI for further investigation.  The FBI analyzed the devices and found numerous images and videos of child sexually abusive material, including a video of the minor victim.

“Protecting our most vulnerable residents is one of my office’s top priorities – we must do everything in our power to protect our children from those who seek to cause them enduring harm. By seeking just punishment, we acknowledge this victim’s trauma and hope that this sentence helps the child’s journey toward a full recovery,”  U.S. Attorney Ison said.

"Our top priority is to protect our communities' youngest members from individuals who mean to take advantage of them. This sentencing and path to accountability would not be possible without the men and women of the Dearborn Police Department and the United States Attorney's Office,” said Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Michigan. “I would also like to thank the concerned citizen who dared to stand up to Mr. Bazzi and speak for our victim by reporting his heinous crimes to law enforcement. As a member of the law enforcement community, we can achieve tremendous success in partnership with our concerned citizens. If you know of someone victimizing our youth, please call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI, or you may submit an online tip at TIPS.FBI.GOV."

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Dearborn Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Rawsthorne and Tara Hindelang.