Two Rochester Men Indicted for Producing Child Pornography

ROCHESTER, N.Y.--U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that a federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Shahmell Robinson, 21 and Jordan McCloud, 22, both of Rochester, NY, with production of child pornography. The charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

“Federal pornography laws enable this Office to prosecute those who would videotape the rape of a child, not just the rapist, said U.S. Attorney Hochul. “We will continue to use all tools at our disposal to help protect children from these violent predators.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig R. Gestring, who is handling the case, stated that according to the indictment, Robinson raped a 14 year old girl while McCloud recorded the incident on his cellular telephone. The conduct occurred at a residence in Greece in August, 2014. The videos came to the attention of law enforcement when another individual posted them on Facebook.

The defendants will be arraigned on November 6, 2014 at 9:00 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Marian W. Payson.

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 Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's 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.

The indictment is the culmination of an investigation on the part of members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Child Exploitation Task Force, along with officers from the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief Michael Ciminelli and members of the Greece Police Department, under the direction of Chief Patrick Phelan.

The fact that the defendants have been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.