Jerome Man Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Possession of Child Pornography

BOISE –  Casey Gibson, 23, of Jerome was sentenced today in United States District Court to 30 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for possession of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced.   Gibson pleaded guilty on August 30, 2016.

According to the plea agreement, an electronic device at Gibson’s residence in Jerome accessed a website based in Russia that contained child pornography, and made postings offering to trade images of child pornography.  In July of 2015, agents with the Department of Homeland Security, with assistance from the Twin Falls County Sheriff’s Office, contacted Gibson at his residence.  Gibson gave agents consent to search his phone and e-mail accounts.  Agents discovered evidence that Gibson used his e-mail account to receive, distribute, and possess images of child pornography.  During a voluntary interview, Gibson admitted to receiving and viewing images of child pornography in his e-mail account.  Agents discovered 11 images of child pornography, and 1 video containing child pornography, including images of prepubescent minors under the age of 12.

The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the Twin Falls County Sheriff’s Office and the Jerome County Sheriff’s Office, and was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”