Texas: Wisam Sharieff, a former Texas imam and online Quran instructor who was charged with conspiracy to produce child pornography has been sentenced to 80 years in prison, according to federal court documents. 

He was sentenced on Wednesday January 28, 2026 in the Alabama Northern District Court, more than six months after he entered a guilty plea on three federal child sexual exploitation charges.

The court also ordered him to pay $135,000 to a fund for victims of child sexual abuse. Meanwhile, his co-defendant, Blake Miller Barakat, was sentenced to 70 years last October.

According to the indictment, Sharieff and Barakat, an Alabama woman he was teaching, allegedly conspired together to coerce Barakat’s child to engage in sexually explicit behavior for the purpose of producing pornography.

FBI special agent Eric Salvador reported in a sworn affidavit that electronic devices and sexual toys were seized from Barakat’s residence.

Officers also discovered a private chat on the Telegram messaging app in which Sharieff sent explicit videos of himself, and the messages showed that the mother sent explicit videos of her child viewing adult pornography, according to the affidavit. 

Sharieff’s lawyers had asked the court for the minimum punishment in accordance with federal sentencing guidelines.

In a court filing days before his sentencing, Sharieff’s wife, sister, a friend and others submitted character letters attesting to his “remorse since his arrest” and saying “that he has expressed shame, accountability, and a sincere desire to change.”

Before his arrest, Sharieff was an online Quranic instructor for the educational nonprofit AlMaghrib Institute. He was known for creating the institute’s Quran Revolution program, a popular curriculum for learning Quran recitation.

His employment was terminated after the institute investigated the allegations against him. In a November 1, 2024, post on the social media platform X, the AlMaghrib Institute said it had been notified of “a serious violation of AlMaghrib Institute policy by Wisam Sharieff.”

The post went on to say the institute had determined the action was in violation of its code of conduct and had terminated Sharieff’s employment contract.

“Our nation’s justice system will now deal with Wisam Sharieff, and we ask Allah to bring solace to the victims and to bring healing to our community,” the statement said. “Allah’s religion is not reliant on any one individual, and the Quran Revolution program will continue with our students as scheduled.”

Imam Wisam began his Islamic education at the Institute of Islamic Education (IIE) in Elgin, Illinois. He then continued at the Quran Academy in Lahore, Pakistan, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Arabic grammar and a minor in Arabic literature.

He has studied under scholars in Makkah and in Egypt. Imam Wisam is also a certified radiology technician. He has also completed his ijazah in Ashara Qiraat (the study of the varying recitations of the Quran).

Imam Wisam resided in Dallas, TX with his family, while also running AQL (Advocating Quranic Literacy) as its founder and director.