Citrus Heights man, 48, pleads guilty to child porn charges

By Mike Hazlip—
A Citrus Heights man plead guilty to possession of child pornography in a Sept. 26 court appearance, according to a press release by the U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of California.

The release said 48-year-old Christopher Campbell was arrested after engaging with an undercover officer in an online chat in February of this year, believing the officer was a 13-year-old girl.

Campbell was one of two Citrus Heights men arrested in March as part of Operation Valentine’s Day, according to a March 10 report by ABC10. The report names the other man as 44-year-old Jorge Herreraserrano. In all, 18 individuals were arrested in the operation, most of whom were Sacramento County residents.

In Campbell’s case, more than 500 images and 45 videos of child pornography were seized, authorities said. Another 169 videos depicting toddlers and other minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct were also found on Campbell’s “Mega cloud storage account.”

Multiple agencies cooperated in the operation including the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Homeland Security Investigations, the release said.

Campbell is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 6, 2024, and faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum of 20 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine.