Chesapeake Man Sentenced to Twenty-Six Years in Prison for Production of Child Pornography
NORFOLK, Va. – Joseph Lee Simpson, 32, of Chesapeake, Va., was sentenced today in Norfolk federal court to 26 years in prison for producing child pornography. Simpson previously pled guilty to the charge on April 21, 2011.
Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, made the announcement after Simpson was sentenced by United States District Raymond A. Jackson.
According to court documents, Simpson was identified by the Chesapeake Police Department when they received a report of child molestation. In August 2010, Chesapeake Police Officers executed a search on Simpson’s home. During the search, police seized several computer media that Simpson admitted contained child pornography. Analysis of the computer by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) revealed that Simpson possessed numerous images of child pornography. Additionally, ICE agents discovered that Simpson had produced nude images of the child he was suspected of molesting by means of a hidden camera.
This case was investigated by ICE and the Chesapeake Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph L. Kosky prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.
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.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at www.justice.gov/usao/vae. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.uspci.uscourts.gov.
