Jasper County Man Sentenced For Child Pornography Violations

 BEAUMONT, Texas – A 40-year-old Jasper, Texas, man has been sentenced to federal prison for child pornography violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
 
Tracy Jay Chappell pleaded guilty on July 11, 2013 to possession of child pornography and was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Marcia Crone.

According to information presented in court, on Apr. 4, 2011, Chappell was identified through his IP (Internet Protocol) address during an undercover operation targeting child pornography distribution.  The IP address had files available for any computer user connected to the internet to access using publicly available file sharing software.  A federal search warrant was later executed at Chappell’s residence on County Road 136 in Jasper.  During the search, a personal computer was seized that contained approximately 1,200 files depicting child pornography.  Chappell was indicted by a federal grand jury on Feb. 6, 2013
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.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigation’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Beaumont Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall L. Fluke.