DOJ: Burns ‘victimized over 100 children’

A federal jury convicted a Sparks man Tuesday for sexually exploiting multiple children and coercing them into sharing sexual images of themselves.

James Patrick Burns, 55, threatened children into producing sexual content through online messaging and file-sharing sites between 2018 and 2021, which he then shared on dark web forums, according to court documents.

“At the time, Burns was the most prolific creator of illegal content on these forums,” according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release.

“He victimized over 100 children, many of whom have yet to be identified.”

A mother of one of his victims saw threats on the victim’s phone and reported what she saw to the police, the DOJ said.

The jury convicted Burns of eight counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, eight counts of coercion and enticement of a minor, and one count each of advertising, receiving, distributing and possessing child pornography. In a separate trial, the jury also convicted Burns of committing these felonies while required to be registered as a sex offender.

Burns is scheduled to be sentenced June 10. He faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison and a maximum penalty of life in prison.

The FBI-led Northern Nevada Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force – which is comprised of detectives and investigators from the Sparks Police Department, Washoe County Sheriff’s Office, the Nevada Attorney General’s Office and Homeland Security – investigated the case.

The FBI’s Las Vegas field office is seeking the help of anyone who may have been victimized by or have knowledge of sexual abuse of children involving Burns. If you or a minor dependent has had contact with Burns while using Omegle, Snapchat, Tiktok and Mega.nz between 2018 and 2021, you’re asked to call 800-CALL-FBI or visit tips.fbi.gov.