A Mexican national, Ruben Manuel Barraza Reyes, was indicted on Mar. 12 in Tulsa for charges related to possessing and distributing child sexual abuse material. The indictment lists charges of Receipt and Distribution of Child Pornography, Possession of Child Pornography, and Obscene Visual Representations of the Sexual Abuse of Children.
The case began in August 2025 when law enforcement arrested an individual in Alaska who was using the messaging application Telegram to receive and distribute child sexual abuse material. According to court documents, this individual had been communicating with a user later identified as Barraza Reyes. Over two days, they exchanged dozens of images and videos containing child sexual abuse material, including obscene drawings depicting children being sexually abused.
Law enforcement executed search warrants at Barraza Reyes’s home and seized electronic devices, including a cellphone he had at the time of his arrest. During booking procedures, agents discovered that Barraza Reyes was unlawfully residing in the United States.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is leading the investigation into this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Dewhurst is prosecuting the matter.
Officials remind the public that an indictment is only an allegation and that defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
This prosecution falls under Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. The program brings together federal, state, and local resources to locate offenders who exploit children online and to identify victims.
