CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (HSI) – An Egyptian national was sentenced to nearly 34 years in prison Tuesday for grooming and sexually coercing a Texas minor following an investigation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Corpus Christi, Texas, with the assistance of the George West (Texas) Police Department.
Ehab Sadeek, a 49-year-old Egyptian national living in Massachusetts, was sentenced in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas to 405 months in federal prison following multiple convictions of child exploitation. Sadeek was found guilty of the charges Nov. 18, 2021, following a one-day bench trial.
Calling the matter one of the most “egregious cases” before the court, U.S. District Judge David S. Morales considered the emotionally moving victim statements which described the trauma that Sadeek’s misconduct caused the minor and her family. The court noted how Sadeek “terrorized an innocent” in committing his crime.
Sadeek will also serve the rest of his life on supervised release following completion of his prison term, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet. He will also be ordered to register as a sex offender and pay restitution to the minor victim.
On May 26, 2020, law enforcement responded to a call about a suspicious individual walking near a residence in a rural area of Corpus Christi. They discovered Sadeek outside the victim’s home.
The investigation revealed that Sadeek had groomed the minor and sent sexually explicit messages via social media for approximately two weeks. He then traveled from Massachusetts to Texas with the intent to engage sexually with the girl.
Sadeek will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Molly K. Smith and Dennis E. Robinson prosecuted the case.
