Jeff Tillotson Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison for Child Pornography Crimes

Kingsport Resident Convicted of Three Child Pornography Crimes

May 25, 2010 - GREENEVILLE, TN—Jeff Francis Tillotson, 26, of Kingsport, Tennessee, was sentenced to 204 months in prison in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville, by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, United States District Judge. He was ordered to complete sex offender treatment during imprisonment; pay $300 in special assessments; and remain under federal supervised release for the remainder of his life. The sentence was the result of conviction at trial by Tillotson on December 12, 2008, to a federal grand jury indictment charging him with distributing, advertising, and possessing child pornography. Tillotson has remained in federal custody since his arrest after indictment on May 6, 2008.

The indictment and subsequent conviction of Tillotson was the result of investigations conducted by the United States Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE); Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations; Knoxville Police Department Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force; Kingsport Police Department; and Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Robert Reeves and Helen Smith represented the United States at trial.

“All children have an absolute right to grow up free from the fear of sexual exploitation,” said Raymond R. Parmer, Jr., special agent in charge of the ICE Office of Investigations in New Orleans. “ICE relentlessly pursues predators who sexually abuse children, whether that abuse is physical in nature or if it is accomplished by exploiting their images. The sentencing of Tillotson sends a strong message that ICE will not tolerate such despicable crimes. Our agents will continue to police cyberspace and target those who travel abroad to exploit one of the most vulnerable segments of our society — our children.”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006, by the Department of Justice. Led by the United States Attorneys’ offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood 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 Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.