Montana federal jury finds 2 men guilty of child exploitation enterprise

MISSOULA, Mont. — Two men were found guilty by a federal jury Thursday of participating in a child exploitation enterprise and a conspiracy to advertise child pornography.

Joshua Peterson, 45, of Prescott, Arizona, and Steven Grovo, 35, of Shirley, Massachusetts, were accused by a federal grand jury in Montana of promoting the sexual exploitation of children using an international online bulletin board where members advertised, distributed, viewed and received images depicting child pornography. Both men are being detained pending their Jan. 22 sentencing in Missoula.

The lengthy and wide-ranging investigation, referred to as Operation Kingdom Conqueror, is an ongoing cooperative effort among the following law enforcement agencies: FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Montana Department of Criminal Investigations, the Helena and Polson Police Departments, the U.S. Department of Justice's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, the Montana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and the States of Jersey Police Department, Isle of Jersey (near the United Kingdom).

The government presented evidence that in November 2009, an early participant in the conspiracy designed and created an online bulletin board which allowed the board members to exchange files on line which contained child pornography and non-child pornography images. As the conspiracy progressed, additional members contributed to the design and operations of the board. From Nov. 6, 2009 through March 19, 2012, Peterson, Grovo and the others used the online bulletin board to share pictures and videos of children engaged in sexually explicit conduct. During that same time, the participants agreed to use the online bulletin board to publish or print notices or ads soliciting additional images of child pornography which they then shared and broadcast on the Internet.

U.S. Attorney Michael W. Cotter, District of Montana, said: "The internet exchange of child pornography creates a market for the victimization of children. That market destroys lives and robs children of their innocence. It is a grotesque crime that must be dealt with in a manner that fully reflects the tragedy it causes its victims. This prosecution is a product of diligent work by the very dedicated, skilled and highly trained agents of Operation Kingdom Conqueror. As the work of this team of professionals — from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, State of Montana DCI, the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Homeland Security, Polson Police Department and the Helena Police Department — continues, there will be more cases and more defendants indicted from all across the United States. These agents, and this office, will never relax our commitment to the protection of children."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Cyndee L. Peterson and Maureen C. Cain with the U.S. Department of Justice, Child Exploitation & Obscenity Section, prosecuted 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 producing and distributing online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking children. In fiscal year 2013, more than 2,000 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative.

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. 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.