A former North Texas reserve police officer will spend the rest of his life in prison after a jury rejected his claim that hoarding child sexual abuse material was part of a secret human trafficking investigation.
Daniel Joseph Bates, who had worked for the Itasca Police Department, received three consecutive life sentences Wednesday for possession of child pornography, plus a 40-year sentence for online solicitation of a minor, according to a statement from Johnson and Somerville Counties’ District Attorney Timothy Good. The combined punishment came after investigators discovered more than 300 videos and images depicting children being sexually abused on his digital devices.
The case began when a civilian decoy, posing as a 15-year-old girl, engaged Bates in online communication and then alerted authorities. Texas Rangers obtained a search warrant for Bates’ devices after the civilian, Arlind Queriman, reported the exchanges. Queriman, who creates video content exposing individuals who solicit minors for sex, had been tipped off when Bates told the person he believed to be a teenage girl that he carried a gun at all times because of his police work.
“Some people say we’re vigilantes. Vigilantes beat up these people. I hand everything over to law enforcement,” Queriman told FOX 4 Dallas.
At the time of his arrest, Bates was no longer actively serving as an officer and was working highway construction security, authorities noted. He was only a reserve police officer during his time with the Itasca department.
During trial, Bates took the stand and testified that the material in his possession was tied to an official investigation he was conducting into human traffickers. Prosecutors disputed that account, and the district attorney’s office stated that Bates could not substantiate his claims.
“Bates was unable to substantiate his claims that he was conducting an official police investigation,” the statement read.
District Attorney Good also told FOX 4 that Bates attempted to leverage his former position to avoid charges. “He actually tried to play the badge thing,” Good said.
Assistant District Attorney Christy May delivered a sharp rebuke of Bates’ conduct in the statement shared. “The badge was supposed to be a shield for children — not a shield for a predator. He made his choices. The jury made its verdict. And the judge made sure his next choice will be made from a prison cell for the rest of his life,” May said.
Good described the evidence presented to the jury in stark terms. “The images and videos that had to be processed and presented to the jury are indescribable in the level of depravity they depict and the degree of deviance of the defendant who voluntarily possessed and viewed those types of images,” he said in the statement.
Good added that Bates had betrayed his oath of office. “Daniel Bates disgraced his badge and violated his oath and became the monster that he was sworn to protect the community from. Our community is safer with Bates serving three consecutive life sentences.”
Fox News Digital contacted the Itasca Police Department for further comment.