Skip to main content
Press Release

New London Man Indicted for Production and Possession of Child Pornography

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Wisconsin

United States Attorney James L. Santelle, for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on December 16, 2014, a federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment against Shane M. Sells (age: 38) of New London, Wisconsin, charging him with one count of production of child pornography in violation of 18 United States Code Section 2251 (a) and one count of possession of child pornography in violation of 18 United States Code Section 2252A (a)(5)(B).

 If convicted of the production offense, Sells faces a sentence of between fifteen and thirty years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and between five years and a lifetime of supervised release. If he is convicted on the possession offense Sells faces up to ten years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and between five years and a lifetime of supervised release.   

 According to the indictment, Sells engaged in sexually explicit conduct with a minor child for the purpose of producing a recorded visual depiction of that conduct, as well as knowingly possessing multiple images of child pornography.  

The case was investigated by the Wisconsin Department of Justice, Division of Criminal Investigation and the Shawano County Sheriff’s Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel R. Humble.

 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 U.S. Department of Justice.  Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the 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 www.projectsafechildhood.gov. 

  An indictment is only a charge and not evidence of guilt.  The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Updated January 29, 2015