New Jersey man sentenced to 41 months in prison for distributing images of child sexual abuse

TRENTON, N.J. – A Monmouth County, N.J., man was sentenced April 1 for distributing images of child sexual abuse. The sentence is the result of an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

John Nutt, 55, of Asbury Park, N.J., was sentenced in federal court to 41 months in prison. In addition to the prison term, he was sentenced to five years of supervised release. The HSI investigation revealed Nutt used his BlackBerry smartphone to distribute images of child sexual abuse. Nutt previously pleaded guilty Dec. 4, 2012, to distribution of child pornography.

According to court documents, a woman in Nevada received an image of child pornography on her cell phone from a phone number unknown to her April 10, 2011. When she reported this event to Nevada law enforcement, law enforcement officers determined that the phone number belonged to Nutt, and that Nutt lived in Asbury Park.

On May 19, 2011, HSI special agents executed a search warrant at Nutt's residence and seized his BlackBerry smartphone, which agents later determined had been used to distribute and receive child pornography.

The Monmouth County (N.J.) Prosecutor's Office, the Asbury Park Police Department and the Mineral County (Nev.) Sheriff's Department assisted in the investigation.

This investigation was part of Operation Predator, a nationwide HSI initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel overseas for sex with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders and child sex traffickers. HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2ICE 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 (1-800-843-5678) or its online resource for reporting child sexual exploitation.

HSI is a founding member and the U.S. representative of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.