29-Year-Old Houston Man Convicted of Possession of Child Pornography

HOUSTON—Brandon Rashaud Furlough, 29, has entered a guilty plea to one count of possession of child pornography, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today.

Before U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison today, Furlough conceded that in February and March 2010, undercover FBI agents connected to the Internet and signed on to a peer-to-peer file-sharing program and, on two occasions, were able to download images of child pornography. The downloads were traced to Furlough’s computer at his residence in Houston.

On April 9, 2010, a federal search warrant was executed at Furlough’s residence, at which time he was interviewed and admitted to possession of child pornography utilizing multiple computers located within the residence. Furlough told agents that he last looked at child pornography two days prior, on April 7. Several computers, thumb drives, and CD/DVDs were seized and a total of 5,900 child pornography images and/or movies were found on three computers.

Furlough faces a sentence of up to 10 years’ imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000 as possible punishment at his sentencing set for April 4, 2012. Upon completion of any prison term imposed, Furlough also faces a maximum of life on supervised release during which the court can impose a number of special conditions designed to protect children and prohibit the use of the Internet.

Arrested in July 2011, Furlough was permitted to remain on bond pending his sentencing hearing.

This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Stabe and investigated by the FBI, 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 United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 Projectsafechildhood.gov.