Missouri Man Indicted, Accused of Seeking Child Pornography Online

ST. LOUIS – A man from O’Fallon, Missouri was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday and accused of coercing two underage girls to send him images containing child pornography and the statutory rape of one of the girls.

Andrew Haller, 33, was indicted on two counts of coercion and enticement of a minor, one count of distribution of child pornography and one count of receipt of child pornography. 

Haller was initially charged by complaint November 14. Charging documents say the FBI received a tip about Haller in October alleging that a 15-year-old girl had met Haller online, communicated with him via Tumblr and Telegram and sent him nude pictures at his request.

A motion seeking Haller’s detention until trial and a subsequent detention order say the second alleged victim is also 15, and that Haller traveled out of state to meet her. The indictment accuses Haller of the statutory rape of that girl.

“It is common for child predators to lurk and prey where children spend time interacting with others on the internet. It is no different in the physical world,” said Special Agent in Charge Jay Greenberg of the FBI St. Louis Division. “When it comes to online child exploitation, we need our children to know they are the victims and are not in trouble with the law so they feel comfortable telling a trusted adult.”

The FBI is asking for information relevant to the investigation of Andrew Haller or any potential victims to contact the FBI at tips.fbi.gov or 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324).

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The FBI investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Hayes is prosecuting the case.

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 Department of Justice Criminal Division's 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.