East Hill Man Pleads Guilty to Distibuting Child Pornography

PENSACOLA, FLORIDA –Kandel Markie Whiting, 35, of Pensacola, pled guilty yesterday to receipt and distribution of child pornography.  The plea was announced by Pamela C. Marsh, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

During his plea, Whiting admitted that, between October 2014 and January 2015, he used the social media applications Twitter and Kik to share images of minors engaged in sex acts.  In January 2015, Whiting’s Twitter account was reported to law enforcement for containing images of child pornography.  When agents executed a federal search warrant at Whiting’s residence and seized his cellular phone, they quickly located the illicit material within his social media applications.  Whiting then admitted to sharing child pornography online using Twitter and Kik.  Additionally, a forensic review of Whiting’s digital media revealed numerous child pornographic images and videos.

Sentencing is scheduled for August 17, 2015, before Chief United States District Judge M. Casey Rodgers at the United States Courthouse in Pensacola, Florida.  Whiting faces a mandatory minimum of 5 years in prison and maximums of 20 years in prison, life on supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.

The case is being investigated by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Pensacola Police Department, and the other agencies that are part of the North Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, whose joint investigation led to the charges in this case.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David L. Goldberg.

The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General.  The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States.  To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website.  For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html

For more information, contact:
Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854, amy.alexander@usdoj.gov