East Texas man indicted for receiving, distributing and possessing child pornography

BEAUMONT, Texas — A local man was indicted Friday on child exploitation charges, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales, Eastern District of Texas.

This investigation is being conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Beaumont Police Department.

Gary Allen George, 57, from Beaumont, was indicted by a federal grand jury May 6 and charged with receiving, distributing and possessing child pornography.

According to the indictment, an investigation revealed that from Aug. 6 to Sept. 18, 2014, George is alleged to have received, distributed and possessed files containing images or videos of child pornography on his computer.  At least one of these images involved a minor under the age of 12 engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

George faces a minimum of five years, and up to 20 years, in federal prison, if convicted.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall L. Fluke, Eastern District of Texas, is prosecuting this case.

This investigation was conducted under HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 10,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2014, more than 2,300 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative and more than 1,000 victims identified or rescued.

HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. From outside the U.S. and Canada, callers should dial 802-872-6199. Hearing impaired users can call TTY 802-872-6196. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.

For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI’s Operation Predator smartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page.

HSI is a founding member and current chair of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies and private industry sector partners working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.

It is important to note that an indictment should not be considered as evidence of guilt and that all persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.