Joseph Ray Robertson commissioned this custom-made costume to develop his furry persona, prosecutors said | Image by U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas/press release.

A 37-year-old Frisco man received a 20-year federal prison sentence after pleading guilty to transporting a child from Texas to an Atlanta furry convention for sexual exploitation.

U.S. District Judge Richard Schell sentenced Joseph Ray Robertson to 240 months in prison on July 13 and ordered a lifetime term of supervised release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas announced.

In May 2024, Robertson transported the child from Frisco to Atlanta to attend a furry convention, according to information presented in court. The Department of Justice describes the furry subculture as enthusiasts of anthropomorphic, or human-like, animals who create animal characters with human personalities and traits.

Robertson commissioned an elaborate, custom-made costume to develop his furry persona. At the convention, he sexually abused the child through acts that would constitute child molestation and sodomy under Georgia law, prosecutors said.

He also bought sexual stimulants and devices at the event and commissioned artwork depicting his furry persona engaged in sex acts with the child, according to prosecutors.

The federal release did not identify the convention, disclose the child’s age or explain the child’s relationship to Robertson.

Prosecutor condemns abuse

“This defendant turned a furry costume into a nightmare of sexual abuse,” U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs said.

Combs said the entire 20-year sentence was justified. He also criticized what he described as a failure by convention attendees to protect the child.

“Not one person in that convention contacted the authorities to protect the child,” Combs said.

The FBI and Frisco Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Marisa Miller prosecuted it under Project Safe Childhood, a Department of Justice initiative launched in May 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.

The initiative coordinates federal, state and local resources to locate and prosecute people who exploit children through the internet and to identify and rescue victims.