Albany

The defense calls it a harmless case of "sexting" between a boyfriend and girlfriend.

Federal prosecutors call it production of child pornography by a stalker.

Depending on the outcome of the case in U.S. District Court in Albany, a refugee from Myanmar could face at least 15 years in federal prison.

Kyaw Htet, 25, was placed on home detention at his parents' house in Houston following a hearing Thursday before Magistrate Judge Randolph Treece.

Htet was arrested Jan. 16 after he took a bus from Houston to meet a 16-year-old Rensselaer High School student he identified to police as his girlfriend. When he gave his phone to Rensselaer police to prove he was the girl's boyfriend, they found naked images of her and charged him with harassment and stalking. He was later booked on several child pornography-related charges in federal court.

Htet's attorney, Assistant Federal Public Defender Gene Primomo, questioned the charges.

"It's a sexting case," he told the Times Union. "Child pornography laws are meant to protect children by enforcing the most serious punishment in our system, not (at) young adolescents engaging in sexting relationships with the technology we all have at our fingertips."

Htet and his family moved from Myanmar to the U.S. in May 2010.

His arrest was chronicled in a criminal complaint filed in January by Special Agent James Hamilton of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The complaint and people with knowledge of the case described the series of events as follows:

Htet and the girl, also from Myanmar, started communicating via phone, email and text message in November 2011 after they were introduced by a third party. During the time they communicated, Htet sent naked pictures of himself to the girl's cellphone. On July 17, the girl's mother told Htet to stop contacting her daughter. The mother reported harassment by Htet to Rensselaer police but never filed criminal charges. Police later told Htet to stop communicating with the girl, who claimed she did not want Htet to contact her again.

The girl, however, continued to communicate with Htet until mid-December. She told police that's when she ceased communications with Htet and told him not to contact her anymore. But she said Htet "continued to call her, stating he will come to where she is, that she can't stop talking to him and that he would embarrass her when he came to her location."

On the day he showed up at school, she told police, Htet left her a phone message saying: "I'm here at your school. Please come out to see me." She alleged Htet earlier threatened to kill her.

Primomo said the girl sent Htet dozens of letters since the July complaint, at times referring to Htet as her "sweetheart," "lover" and once telling him, "I love you forever." That's in addition to her 657 phone calls to Htet.

"These cards and letters document that this young couple were in a serious boyfriend and girlfriend relationship that continued up to the date of arrest and may still be intact today as far as (the) 'victim' is concerned," Primomo wrote in a memo to the judge. She also recently referred to Htet as her boyfriend on Facebook, he said.

"His parents, while in Houston, had a phone conversation with his girlfriend. She told them that she was in love with their son and that she wanted to be married to him," Primomo said.

On Thursday, Htet sat quietly in court as his parents watched via video from Houston federal court. At the end of the hearing, Treece ordered that Htet be held on home detention. However, his family must first put up a $10,000 unsecured bond. His conditions of home detention will prevent him from using any cellphones, computers or going to locations where people younger than 18 congregate.

rgavin@timesunion.com • 518-434-2403 • @RobertGavinTU