Riverside County Man Arrested for Possessing, Receiving, and Distributing Child Pornography Via File-Sharing Network

A Homeland man has been arrested on federal charges alleging he used a file sharing network to receive, possess, and distribute child pornography, announced Steven Martinez, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office.

George Devinna, 73, was arrested Monday by FBI agents after being named in a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Riverside on December 9. During his initial court appearance Monday afternoon, Devinna was ordered detained without bond. An arraignment date is scheduled for January 18 at 9:30 a.m. in U.S. District Court in Riverside.

The complaint charges Devinna with the possession, distribution, and receipt of child pornography. If convicted on all charges, Devinna faces a statutory maximum penalty of 50 years in prison.

Earlier this year, agents conducting an investigation of illegal file-sharing networks in Rochester, New York, and Los Angeles uncovered several images depicting child pornography. Further investigation and subsequent Internet subscriber checks identified the distributor of the illicit images as George Devinna, with an address that matched the defendant’s Homeland address. The downloaded images linked to Devinna’s computer included sexually explicit photographs of pre-teen boys.

On December 2, 2011, a search warrant was executed at Devinna’s Homeland residence, where he resides alone. During the search, agents found child pornography and other evidence linking Devinna to the file sharing network. Files found on Devinna’s computer included sexually explicit videos involving pre-teen boys that investigators recognized as part of a documented child pornography series.

Anyone with information relevant to this investigation is urged to contact Special Agent Jeff Stiff with the FBI at 951-248-6582.

This investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Devinna will be prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office.

A criminal complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in court.