Belleville Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Offenses

A Belleville man pled guilty in federal court on August 21, 2012, to a three-count indictment charging him with enticement of a minor (count one), transfer of obscene matter to a minor (count two), and transportation of child pornography (count three), the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.

Jack C. Baldwin, Jr., 46, faces a term in prison of not less than 10 years up to life, a fine up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release of five years to life on count one. On count two, Baldwin faces a term in prison of not more than 10 years, a fine up to $250,000, or both, and a term of supervised release of not more than three years. Finally, on count three, Baldwin faces a term in prison of not less than five years but not more than 20 years, and a fine up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release of five years to life. In addition, upon his release from prison, Baldwin must register as a sex offender as a condition of his supervised release. Sentencing is scheduled for December 3, 2012, in East St. Louis, Illinois. Baldwin has been detained, that is, held without bond, since his arraignment on July 2, 2012.

The violation charged in count one occurred between December 10 and December 13, 2011, when Baldwin persuaded an 11-year-old minor to send him pictures of his/her nude genitalia via a cellular telephone. The violation charged in count two occurred on December 10, 2011, when Baldwin sent the 11-year-old a close-up picture of his erect nude penis. Finally, the violation charged in count three occurred on December 13, 2011, when Baldwin, using a cellular telephone, sent the photo of the 11-year-old’s nude genitalia from his cell phone account to his e-mail account.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”

The case was investigated by the Royalton Police Department, the Belleville Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Metro East Cyber Crimes and Analysis Task Force. The case is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Angela Scott.