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Press Release

Repeat Offender Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Possessing Child Sexual Abuse Material

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Maine
Joseph Gibson of Lisbon Falls was convicted twice in state court for similar crimes

PORTLAND, Maine:  A Lisbon Falls man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Portland for possessing child sexual abuse material.

U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen sentenced Joseph Gibson, 36, to 10 years in prison followed by eight years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $9,000 in restitution.

According to court records, an IP address registered to Gibson’s residence was identified as downloading child sexual abuse material in September and October of 2023 via BitTorrent. In December 2023, the Maine State Police executed a search warrant at the residence, and during an interview, Gibson admitted to viewing child sexual abuse material online. Investigators with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) analyzed two devices seized from the residence and recovered five video files of children younger than 12 being sexually abused. Gibson has two prior state convictions, in January 2010 and December 2011, relating to possessing and distributing child sexual abuse material. 

The Maine State Police and HSI investigated the case.

To report an incident involving the possession, distribution, receipt or production of child pornography: Child sexual abuse material – referred to in legal terms as "child pornography" – captures the sexual abuse and exploitation of children. These images document victims’ exploitation and abuse, and they suffer revictimization every time the images are viewed. In 2023, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children received 36 million reports of the possession, manufacture, or distribution of child sexual abuse materials. To file a report with NCMEC, go to https://report.cybertip.org or call 1-800-843-5678. If you are in Maine and you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted or abused, you can get help by calling the free, private 24-hour statewide sexual assault helpline at 1-800-871-7741.

Project Safe Childhood: 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 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-me/psc.

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Contact

Sheila W. Sawyer, Assistant United States Attorney (Tel.:207-780-3257)

Updated January 2, 2025

Topic
Project Safe Childhood
Component