Registered Sex Offender Sentenced To 30 Years In Federal Prison For Child Pornography

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA – Stephen Edward Cobb, 62, of Gainesville, Florida, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison after previously pleading guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography. The sentence was announced by Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

“Protecting innocent children from sexual predators remains one of our highest priorities,” said U.S. Attorney Coody. “I commend our law enforcement partners and prosecutors who work diligently to identify these predators and bring them to justice so that they can no longer exploit any child again. Due to their efforts, our community is safer, and this repeat offender is exactly where he belongs – back behind bars.”

In December 2021, law enforcement officers in Gainesville, Florida received information that Cobb was involved in sharing a video of child pornography using the Internet. Cobb is a convicted sex offender required to register under both state and federal law. In June 2022, Cobb was located, and search warrants were obtained for his cell phones and social media accounts. The devices and social media accounts were examined and found to contain hundreds of images and videos of child pornography.

Cobb is a registered sex offender based on a prior state conviction in 2018 for Lewd and Lascivious Assault on a Child.  

“The decades long sentence in this case is based in part on the history of victimization caused by the offender, including harm to a child in this community,” said­­­­ North Florida ICAC Task Force Commander Chris King.  “We are thankful for our partnership with the U.S Attorney’s Office which helped achieve this result.”

“This predatorial recidivist didn’t learn his lesson the first time and continued to victimize children,” said HSI Jacksonville Assistant Special Agent in Charge K. Jim Phillips. “Thanks to the diligence of HSI and the Gainesville Police Department, we were able hold Cobb accountable for his deviant actions once again.”

Cobb’s prison sentence will be followed by a Lifetime of supervised release. Cobb will continue to be required to register as a sex offender and be subject to all sex offender conditions.

The case was investigated by Internet Crime Against Children Task Force Gainesville Police Department and Department of Homeland Security. Assistant United States Attorney Frank Williams prosecuted the case.

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 and led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), it 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.

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. 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.