Local man charged with coercing minor to engage in sexual conduct

HOUSTON – A 42-year-old former Conroe resident is set to appear in federal court on charges of sexual exploitation of children as well as distributing, receiving and possessing child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick.

Timothy Lee Tyler is scheduled to appear today at 10 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Frances H. Stacy.

The indictment, returned Jan. 13, alleges that in 2016 Tyler did or attempted to employ, use, persuade, induce, entice and coerce a minor victim to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of it. On various dates in September 2020, Tyler also allegedly distributed, received and possessed material containing child pornography.

The FBI conducted the investigation with the assistance of Montgomery County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force which is comprised of several local and federal agencies.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephanie Bauman and Sherri Zack are prosecuting the case, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section leads PSC, which marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and identifies and rescues victims. For more information about PSC, please visit DOJ’s PSC page. For more information about internet safety education, please visit the resources tab on that page.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.