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Press Release

Clayton Man Sentenced To 15 Years For Receipt Of Child Pornography

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

WILMINGTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced that in federal court, Senior United States District Judge James C. Fox sentenced jason william wheelEr, 37, of Clayton, North Carolina, to 180 months imprisonment, followed by a five years of supervised release.

WHEELER was named in a Criminal Information filed on December 15, 2015.  On January 25, 2016, WHEELER pled guilty to one count of Receipt of Child Pornography.

In July 2014, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) executed a federal search warrant at a residence in Florida, for distribution and possession of child pornography.  The investigation revealed that the owner sent numerous emails containing sexually explicit photographs and videos to WHEELER, in Clayton.

On October 2, 2014, agents executed a federal search warrant at WHEELER’S residence in Clayton.  Based on the investigation, WHEELER used multiple computers to send and receive a collection of Child Pornography (CP) comprised of at least 82 images and 61 videos.  The defendant’s collection contained material that depicted children involved in sexual bondage or sexual sadomasochistic acts.  On April 4, 2015, WHEELER provided a written statement accepting responsibility for his actions in regards to this offense.

Investigation of this case was conducted by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations (SBI), and the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office.  Assistant United States Attorney Ethan Ontjes represented the government.

 This case was part of the Project Safe Childhood initiative, a national program aimed at ensuring that criminals exploiting children are effectively prosecuted by making full use of all available law enforcement resources at every level.  For more information about this important national project, Project Safe Childhood, go to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Updated June 8, 2016