Bilecki Negotiates Eleven Withdrawals and Wins Bottom of Sentencing Range in Okinawa CSAM Case

Bilecki Negotiates Eleven Withdrawals and Wins Bottom of Sentencing Range in Okinawa CSAM Case

August 2023

Camp Hansen, Okinawa

Marine Lance Corporal | E-3

Allegations: UCMJ Article 80 Attempted Sexual Abuse of a Child via Indecent Communication and Indecent Exposure; UCMJ Article 134 Possession of Child Pornography; UCMJ Article 134 Production of Child Pornography; UCMJ Article 134 Distribution of Child Pornography

Facts

A young Marine stationed at Camp Hansen faced a serious online enticement and CSAM case built through the same pattern we see in many Okinawa cases: apps, online chats, screenshots, undercover personas, and a charge sheet that grew fast.

Our client used SpotAFriend to connect with teenage girls, then moved the conversations to Snapchat. One of those conversations led to a real-world meeting. Our client traveled off Okinawa, met a teenage girl, had sex with her, recorded the encounter, and later sent the video. That conduct became the core of the Article 134 production and distribution charges.

NCIS and the Government built the case in two directions. One side was the real-world production and distribution conduct. The other side was the online enticement case built from chats, screenshots, and alleged communications with undercover or online personas.

These Okinawa online enticement cases often look like a military version of "To Catch a Predator." They can raise entrapment, predisposition, mistake as to age, substantial step, and charge stacking issues. They also give the Government a way to turn one investigation into multiple Article 80 attempted sexual abuse specifications.

That is what happened here. The Government charged ten Article 80 attempted sexual abuse specifications from the online enticement side of the case. It also charged three Article 134 CSAM specifications: possession, production, and distribution. The combined allegations exposed him to decades of possible confinement.

Bilecki was retained at preferral in March 2023 while our client was in pretrial confinement at the Camp Hansen Brig. The first defense move was to break the case apart. The thirteen specification charge sheet was not one indivisible case. It was two different kinds of cases stacked together: the NCIS online enticement allegations, and the real-world Article 134 production and distribution allegations.

Bilecki negotiated a plea agreement that stripped the online enticement case out of the conviction record. All ten Article 80 specifications were withdrawn at plea. The Article 134 possession specification was also withdrawn. Those eleven withdrawn specifications were set to become dismissed with prejudice after appellate review.

The case that remained for sentencing was two Article 134 specifications: production from the real-world encounter and distribution after our client returned to Okinawa.

Those two convictions still carried serious consequences: a Dishonorable Discharge, reduction to E-1, total forfeitures, confinement, a federal conviction record, and sex offender registration consequences. But the plea agreement removed eleven specifications from the conviction record and set confinement at 36 to 60 months total, with confinement running concurrently across the two remaining specifications.

The agreement also included a placement recommendation. If eligible, the convening authority agreed to recommend Naval Consolidated Brig Miramar in San Diego, a military confinement facility with a nonviolent sex offender treatment program.

Tim Bilecki traveled to Okinawa for the contested sentencing hearing. At sentencing, the Government sought to rely on the broader course of conduct, including the online allegations. The defense fought to keep the sentencing case focused on what remained after the plea: production and distribution, not a thirteen specification conviction record.

Bilecki cross examined the lead NCIS agent on that distinction. The defense also presented family testimony by phone, our client's unsworn statement, and mitigation evidence explaining his background, childhood trauma, sexual abuse history, mental health issues, and need for treatment. The unsworn statement did not excuse the conduct. It accepted responsibility and apologized to the victim.

The Military Judge sentenced our client to 36 months confinement, the lowest sentence allowed under the agreement, along with the Dishonorable Discharge, reduction to E-1, and total forfeitures.

The case started as a thirteen-specification general court-martial with the prospect of decades in confinement. The final conviction record had two specifications. Eleven specifications were withdrawn at plea. The sentence was 36 months.

Result: Eleven of thirteen specifications withdrawn at plea. Convicted of production and distribution. Thirty-six months of confinement, a dishonorable discharge, reduction to E-1 and total forfeitures.

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FAQ

Q: Why are Okinawa online enticement cases so dangerous?
Because one online investigation can become a long charge sheet. NCIS undercover persona cases often involve chat logs, screenshots, staged communications, and separate specifications for different alleged messages or attempted acts. These cases can raise entrapment, mistake as to age, predisposition, and substantial step issues. In this case, the Government charged ten Article 80 specifications from the online enticement side of the case. The plea agreement removed all ten from the conviction record.

Q: What remained after the plea agreement?
The case resolved to two Article 134 CSAM specifications: production and distribution. Those convictions still carried serious consequences, including a Dishonorable Discharge, reduction to E-1, total forfeitures, confinement, a federal conviction record, and sex offender registration consequences. The defense value was that eleven specifications came off the conviction record and confinement was limited to 36 to 60 months.

Q: How did the defense get the sentence to 36 months?
The plea agreement created a 36 to 60 month sentencing range. At the sentencing hearing in Okinawa, Bilecki separated the two remaining convictions from the withdrawn online enticement allegations, cross examined the lead NCIS agent, presented family testimony by phone, and used our client's unsworn statement and mitigation evidence to argue for the bottom of the range. The Military Judge sentenced him to 36 months.