Florida man sentenced to more than 11 years for child pornography
OCALA, Fla. – A Florida man was sentenced Wednesday to 11 years and 4 months in federal prison for distributing child pornography. This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
According to court documents, agents from HSI determined that Alan Kenneth Thompson, Jr., 33, of Crystal River, had been using a mobile app to post and receive images depicting child pornography online. The agents tracked the activity to Thompson’s residence. On Sept. 10, 2015, a search warrant was executed at the residence and a cellphone and two laptop computers were seized. More than 4,500 images and 84 video files depicting child pornography were identified during forensic analyses of Thompson’s devices.
“This criminal had thousands of horrible images, each of which represented an atrocious crime on a child,” said Susan L. McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa. “This sentencing should stand as a warning to child predators that you will be held accountable for your crimes.”
During an interview with law enforcement, Thompson admitted that he had been receiving and distributing child pornography, including some in which the victims were only four or five-years-old. Thompson further stated that he recently had begun to take non-pornographic photographs of neighborhood children without their knowledge, including more than 3,000 images of a minor girl.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr., with the office of U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, Middle District of Florida.
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 14,000 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 2015, nearly 2,400 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.
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