Middleburg Man Sentenced To 5 Years In Prison For Receipt Of Child Pornography

Jacksonville, FL – U.S. District Judge Timothy Corrigan has sentenced Robert Hohman (66) to five years in federal prison for receipt of child pornography. Hohman was indicted on October 18, 2012. He pleaded guilty to the offense on August 6, 2013.

In December 2010, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) initiated an investigation regarding a large volume of child pornography being distributed by a French-based message board.  A message board is an online discussion website that allows users to hold conversations via posted messages.  Over the course of this investigation, a customized message board or forum was created, which appeared to be distributing large amounts of child pornography.  Further investigation revealed that one of the individuals utilizing the forum was Robert Hohman. 

On August 7, 2012, special agents with the FBI conducted a non-custodial interview of Hohman at his job.  During the interview Hohman confessed to registering a specific username and associated email address on the forum.  In addition, he admitted that he had been seeking, viewing, and downloading child pornography for many years.  During the interview, Hohman gave the FBI consent to search his home computer.  A forensic review of Hohman’s computer revealed that he downloaded over a dozen videos and hundreds of images of children, as young as toddlers, involved in sexually explicit conduct with adults. 

This case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Malisa Chokshi.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 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."