KC Reporter

A physical therapist from California has been sentenced to 12 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography. Esteban E. Manale, 47, of Hacienda Heights, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips in Kansas City, Missouri. The sentence is without the possibility of parole.

Manale, who owns a physical therapy clinic in Bellflower, California, pleaded guilty on May 3, 2024, to three counts of distributing child pornography. He admitted to sending images of child pornography to an undercover FBI task force officer on three occasions in August 2022. Manale believed the officer was a Missouri woman he met online through a dating application.

In communications with the undercover officer, Manale revealed disturbing details about his interactions with minors and expressed interest in engaging in further illegal activities. He described having sexual contact with "preteens about 10 times" and claimed similar contact with older teens.

Law enforcement executed a search warrant at Manale's residence on December 14, 2022. They seized three cell phones hidden in his bathroom that contained hundreds of images and videos of child pornography.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Maureen A. Brackett and investigated by the FBI along with police departments from Kansas City and Los Angeles.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse nationwide.