Chicago man gets 30 years for exploiting children in the Philippines

A federal judge sentenced 58-year-old Karl Quilter of Chicago to 30 years in federal prison for grooming and sexually exploiting Filipino children,  the Northern District of Illinois US Attorney’s Office said.

According to ABC7 News, Quilter admitted in a plea agreement that, from 2017 to 2020, he communicated with young girls in the Philippines over Facebook, Viber, and Skype. He “enticed at least nine girls in the Philippines to produce [and send] sexually explicit photos and videos,” The Manila Times reported the U.S. Attorney’s office said.

Prosecutors also believe Quilter referred to his child victims as his “girlfriends” and “preyed on their financial difficulties.” Specifically, they say he used money transfers to pressure and manipulate the young girls to send him sexually explicit photos.

Authorities outlined their case against Quilter:

In a disturbing message to one child, a 16-year-old, he promised to send her family food and medication if she did what he ordered. “If u do what I tell you… I will make sure u can buy food for 2 weeks and your medication,” Quilter allegedly messaged the girl. “Think of your little sister that she can eat for 2 weeks every day 3 meals a day and u get well.”

Quilter traveled to the Philippines in 2017 and 2018 and explicitly stated his intentions to sexually assault the minors when he planned to visit the country next in December of 2020. He was arrested by law enforcement in Chicago in November of 2020.

“Victim by victim, and message by message, [the] defendant used social media and the internet to target and groom young Filipino girls,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley A. Chung stated in the government’s sentencing memorandum.  “This was not a one-time aberration, but rather a years-long pattern of predatory abuse and exploitation of minors.”