OKLAHOMA CITY — A 39-year-old Oklahoma City man has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for possessing child pornography and violating the conditions of his federal supervised release, U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester announced.

Chief U.S. District Judge Scott L. Palk sentenced Paul Francis Hudson, 39, to serve 180 months in federal prison during a sentencing hearing on September 3, 2026. The sentence includes 120 months for possession of child pornography and 60 months for violating supervised release, ordered to run consecutively. Judge Palk also ordered Hudson to pay $34,000 in restitution to be divided among 11 child victims depicted in the images, highlighting the severe ongoing harm caused to victims of child exploitation crimes.

Prior Conviction and Unauthorized Phone

Court records show Hudson was previously sentenced in August 2015 to 86 months in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for receipt of child pornography. His supervised release was revoked in March 2023 due to drug use and associating with felons, resulting in nine additional months of imprisonment and a three-year term of supervised release.

In February 2026, U.S. Probation officers discovered that Hudson had obtained an unauthorized cell phone in violation of his release conditions. Federal agents seized the device on February 11, 2026, and located hundreds of images depicting child pornography.

Federal Prosecution and Plea

A federal grand jury indicted Hudson on March 3, 2026. He entered a guilty plea on May 6, 2026, admitting he knowingly used the cell phone to download and store the illicit material.

The case was investigated by the FBI Oklahoma City Field Office with assistance from the U.S. Probation Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon Hale prosecuted the case on behalf of the government, having previously prosecuted Hudson's 2015 federal case.