Easton Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Producing Child Pornography

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that John R. Young, 47, of Easton, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl to 360 months of imprisonment and lifetime supervised release, with victim restitution to be determined at a later date, for production of child pornography. Young was also ordered to forfeit various electronic devices.

According to court documents, the FBI had been investigating a site on the dark web dedicated to child pornography. The investigation identified Young as a user of the website who had posted child pornography there.

On October 17, 2023, FBI and other law enforcement agents executed a federal search warrant at Young’s residence and seized various electronic devices. Young’s devices were found to contain thousands of images of child pornography, including one that Young had produced and posted to the website. Young admitted to law enforcement that he was a user of the dark web site and that he produced the image of child pornography found on the website, which involved a child under 10 years old. Young also admitted that he possessed other images of child pornography on his devices. Finally, Young admitted using a secret video recording device disguised to look like a pen to attempt to produce additional child pornography.

On October 17, 2023, the FBI arrested Young, and in June of this year, he pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography.

“Not only was John Young a prolific collector of child pornography, he sexually exploited a child to produce such an image and shared it with other predators,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “His actions are unconscionable. My office and the FBI are working every day to find and bring to justice anyone victimizing children by creating or trading these horrible images of sexual abuse.”

“Children are among the most vulnerable members of our community, and sexual exploitation of them is one of the most devious crimes the FBI investigates,” said Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Philadelphia. “This sentence is testament to the dedication of the Allentown Resident Agency and our partners at the U.S. Attorney's Office in the pursuit of justice for these victims.” 

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 projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was investigated by FBI Philadelphia's Allentown Resident Agency and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John J. Boscia and Kyle Reynolds of the Department of Justice Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section.