Convicted elderly sex offender from Kingwood headed to prison for the next decade
HOUSTON - A 74-year-old Kingwood resident will spend the next decade behind bars after being sentenced for possessing and watching sexually explicit material involving minors over a web video meeting, officials said.
Stephen Keller pleaded guilty to the charges in November 2023 to one count of accessing with intent to view child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.
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At the time of the plea, officials said the court heard that Keller is a repeat offender against minors as he was convicted in 2001 for criminal solicitation of a minor.
Keller was ordered to serve two 120-month prison terms concurrently for the convictions.
Keller was also ordered to serve 15 years on supervised release following completion of his prison term. During that time, he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the Internet. Officials said he has already registered as a sex offender and will continue to be so following his sentence.
In March 2021, officials said Keller logged into in a web video meeting which included more than 20 minutes of child pornography videos. The investigation identified Keller as one of several participants in the meeting.
Then in February 2022, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Keller’s residence. At that time, he admitted to participating in more than five web video meetings, which involved the streaming of child pornography, officials said. Keller also admitted to receiving child pornography through encrypted messaging apps on his cell phone.
Authorities conducted a forensic investigation and discovered several illicit images of minors on Keller’s phone.
Keller will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.