Former NISD Employee Sentenced to 16 Years in Federal Prison for Distributing Child Pornography

DEL RIO, Texas - A San Antonio man was sentenced in federal court in Del Rio today to 192 months in prison for distribution of child pornography.

According to court documents, Thomas Mckinley Koog Jr., 63, uploaded a one-minute video on a social media website of two minors engaged in sexual acts. The upload led to a report by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children Cyber Tipline to Homeland Security Investigations agents on Aug. 6, 2020. The report also indicated that Koog had additionally distributed three videos of child pornography to six different recipients on multiple days in 2019.

During the investigation, HSI agents determined that Koog was employed as a guidance counselor at a North Side Independent School District (NISD) elementary school. Koog revealed he had been a guidance counselor with the district for more than 12 years and had also spent more than 20 years as an NISD teacher.

U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas made the announcement.

HSI investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rex Beasley and Holly Pavlinski prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

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