Monday, May 10, 2010

Bakersfield Man Sentenced to 10 Years and One Month in Prison for Receipt of Child Pornography

May 10, 2010 - FRESNO, CA—United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that Miguel Angel Garcia, 36, of Bakersfield, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill to 10 years and one month in prison for his conviction of receipt of child pornography. The prison term will be followed by a 15-year term of supervised release during which his access to minors, computers, and the Internet will be restricted. The judge also ordered Garcia to forfeit property used to commit the offense, as well as pay $750 in restitution.

According to court documents, Garcia was targeted by law enforcement in late 2008 because he appeared to be making a large number of images of known child pornography available through a peer-to-peer file sharing program. When a search warrant was executed at Garcia’s home on March 6, 2009, agents discovered a desktop computer that belonged to him. Forensic analysis of that computer revealed the presence of over one hundred videos and over one thousand still images of child pornography. Garcia pleaded guilty on March 4, 2010 and has been detained as a flight risk and danger to the community since June 5, 2009.

This case is the product of an investigation by Federal Bureau of Investigation through its Bakersfield office. The prosecution was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about PSC, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov. Assistant United States Attorney Brian W. Enos prosecuted the case.

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