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Case 4:11-cr-00042-A Document 1 Filed 03/10/11 Page 1 of 6 PageID 1

OR IGl United States District Court

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA


V.
DEREK M. RIPLEY (01)

I, Lori Keefer, the undersigned complainant being duly sworn state the following is true and correct to the

best of my knowledge and belief. On or about November 15,2010, in Tarrant County, in the Northern District

of Texas defendant did,

knowingly distribute, using any means or facility of interstate and foreign commerce, visual depictions
of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct;

in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section(s) 2252(a)(2).

I further state that I am a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and that this

complaint is based on the following facts:

See attached Affidavit of Special Agent Lori Keefer, which is incorporated and made a part hereof by
reference.

Continued on the attached sheet and made a part hereof: ,/Yes No

Lori Keefer, Senior Agent


Federal Bureau of Investigation

Sworn to before me and subscribed in my presence, on this 10th day of March 2011, at Fort Worth, Texas.

HONORABLE JEFFREY L. CURETON


UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
Name & Title of Judicial Officer
Case 4:11-cr-00042-A Document 1 Filed 03/10/11 Page 2 of 6 PageID 2

AFFIDAVIT

I, Lori Keefer, being duly sworn, declared and state as follows:

INTRODUCTION

1. I have been employed as a Special Agent (SA) with the Federal Bureau

of Investigation (FBI) since January 9, 1989, and am currently assigned to the Dallas

Division, Fort Worth Resident Agency located at 2601 Meacham Boulevard, Suite

500, Fort Worth, Texas 76137. Since joining the FBI, I have been involved in

investigations of violent crimes, property crimes, and computer crimes. I am currently

assigned to investigate Sexual Exploitation of Children (SEOC) violations of federal

law. I have gained expertise in the conduct of such investigations through training in

seminars, classes, and everyday work related to conducting these types of

investigations. I also have participated in training in the investigation and

enforcement of federal child pornography laws in which computers are used as the

means for receiving, transmitting, and storing child pornography.

2. This affidavit sets forth facts and suggest reasonable inferences from those

facts, establishing that there is probable cause to believe that on or about

November 15,2010, in the Northern District of Texas, Derek M. RIPLEY committed the

offense of Distribution of Child Pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(2).

3. The information contained in this affidavit is from Affiant's personal

knowledge of the described investigation and from information obtained from other

law enforcement agents.

Affidavit - Page 1
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OVERVIEW OF INVESTIGATION

4. A growing phenomenon on the Internet is peer-to-peer file-sharing

(P2P). P2P allows individuals to meet each other through the Internet, engage in

social networking and trade files. One aspect of P2P file sharing is that multiple files

may be downloaded in parallel, which permits downloading more than one file at a

time.

5. A P2P file transfer is assisted by reference to an Internet Protocol (IP)

address. This address, expressed as four sets of numbers separated by decimal points,

is unique to a particular computer during an online session. The IP address identifies

the location of the computer with which the address is associated, making it possible

for data to be transferred between computers. Third-party software is available to

identify the IP address of the P2P computer sending the file. Such software monitors

and logs Internet and local network traffic.

6. On November 15,2010, SA Barry W. Couch, using a computer

connected to the Internet, launched a publicly available P2P file-sharing program. SA

Couch, acting in an undercover capacity and while assuming a cooperating

defendant's identity, queried the cooperating defendant's network of friends and

observed that an individual, using the username Leak13, was logged into the network.

SA Couch viewed the contents and downloaded files from folders that Leak13 had

selected to share with other users.

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7. SA Couch browsed Leak13's shared folders and observed numerous

image and or movie files depicting child pornography. SA Couch observed that

Leak13 was sharing over 1,400 files. SA Couch previewed Leak13's shared

directories and observed files containing child pornography. SA Couch selected eight

(8) image files and six (6) video files and began to download them directly from

Leak13's computer between 5:16 p.m. and 5:25 p.m. EST. During the download of

these files, SA Couch used a network monitoring program in order to identify the IP

address ofLeak13's computer. SA Couch was able to determine that the IP address

ofLeak13's computer was 75.18.45.148.

8. On November 15,2010, SA Crouch was able to download several files

depicting child pornography from RIPLEY's shared folder. Five (5) of the eight (8)

downloaded files that depict child pornography have the following names and are

briefly described:

a) Cory 12yo boy in red 016.jpg. This is an image file that depicts the

lascivious exhibition of the genitals of a prepubescent male;

b) Jura Preteen Boy Posing Naked Nude legs apart showing_OOl.jpg.

This is an image file that depicts the lascivious exhibition of the genitals of a

prepubescent male;

c) piccolo_3(140).jpg This is an image file that depicts anal-genital

sexual intercourse between a prepubescent male and an older male;

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d) Kdv - Gay Preteen Pedo Boy 8 Y r Old Russian Boys

Tied_002.mpeg. This is a video file that depicts oral-genital sexual

intercourse between a minor male with his hands bound behind his back and a

minor male; and

e) Zadoom Pedo Boys -14Yr Fucks llYr.mpeg. This is a video file

that depicts anal-genital sexual intercourse between a prepubescent male and a

male.

9. The search of a publicly available online database indicated that IP address

75.18.45.148 is registered to the Internet Service Provider Southwestern Bell

Corporation (SBC) Internet Services. Results from the administrative subpoenas sent to

SBC for the date and times the files were downloaded revealed that the IP address was

assigned to an account registered to Derek M. RIPLEY, service and billing address of a

residence in Fort Worth, Texas.

10. On March 10,2011, a search warrant was executed at the RIPLEY

residence in Fort Worth, Texas. RIPLEY, lives alone at the residence and consented to

be interviewed. During the interview, RIPLEY confirmed that one of his user names

was Leak13. RIPLEY also confirmed that he used other file sharing programs to view,

distribute and access child pornography via the Internet. RIPLEY stated that he used his

computer desktop in his bedroom to view the child pornography. RIPLEY continued to

state that he saved all of his child pornography onto a separate external hard drive.

RIPLEY stated that he viewed mostly boys but did view girls from time to time.

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RIPLEY confinned that he masturbated while viewing the child pornography and has

been viewing child pornography since his college years. RIPLEY stated that every time

he views child pornography it was going to be his last time. RIPLEY did continue to

state that he would continue to view child pornography and had done so as recently as

March 7, 2011. RIPLEY also stated that child pornography, "is the most disgusting

thing in the world, I have no desire for children, I work with the youth at my church."

11. In addition to the child pornography that was distributed using the Internet

from the defendant's computer, the defendant had access to numerous images of child

pornography which were password protected through a file sharing program.

CONCLUSION

12. Based on the foregoing facts and circumstances, I respectfully submit that

there is probable cause to believe that on or about November 15,2010, in the Northern

District of Texas, Derek M. RIPLEY committed the offense of Distribution of Child

Pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(2).

Lori Keefer
Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation

d s om before me this 10th day of March 2011, at 3 ~53 p.m.

'-'.L~~lJEJEFFREY L. CURETON
ates Magistrate Judge

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