Tyler Dane Wooten, a 36-year-old resident of Bryant, Arkansas, has been sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for producing child pornography. The sentence was announced by Jonathan D. Ross, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, and was issued by United States District Judge Lee P. Rudofsky.
Wooten was indicted on October 9, 2024, by a federal grand jury on multiple charges including six counts of distribution of child pornography, one count of production of child pornography, two counts of distribution and attempted distribution of child pornography, two counts of receipt and attempted receipt of child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography. In addition to his prison term, Wooten received a lifetime term of supervised release and was ordered to pay $81,000 in restitution. There is no possibility for parole in the federal system.
The investigation began in April 2024 when an FBI Online Covert Employee (OCE) communicated with a user identified as “Bad Daddy,” later determined to be Wooten. Both were members of an online chat group dedicated to exchanging illegal material involving children. Investigators found that between April and June 2024, Wooten participated in sharing videos depicting adults engaging in sexual acts with children.
During a private conversation on April 24, 2024, Wooten told the OCE that he previously possessed over “100+ gigs” of illicit material but had deleted it due to guilt and paranoia before resuming collection efforts. He also expressed interest in more extreme content involving infants and toddlers.
Further review showed that Wooten directed another individual to sexually abuse a child while recording the act. When arrested on July 30, 2024, law enforcement discovered nearly four thousand videos containing child pornography on his devices.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood—a national initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006—aimed at combating online exploitation and abuse against children by coordinating resources across various agencies. More information about this initiative can be found at https://www.justice.gov/psc.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation led the investigation into this case. Assistant United States Attorney Kristin Bryant prosecuted the matter.
