Merrillville Man Convicted of Crimes Against Children Offense

HAMMOND- Tyrone Johnson, age 35, of Merrillville, Indiana, was found guilty following a 2-day jury trial presided over by United States District Court Judge Philip P Simon, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.  

The jury found Johnson guilty of two (2) counts charged in the Second Superseding Indictment.  Johnson was convicted of sexual exploitation of a minor for purpose of producing a visual depiction. He was also convicted of committing a felony offense involving a minor while being required by law to register as a sex offender. 

Johnson will be scheduled for sentencing by separate order of the Court.  Any specific sentence to be imposed will be determined by the District Court Judge after consideration of federal statutes and the United States Sentencing Guidelines. 

The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the Indiana State Police, the Lake County, Indiana Sheriff’s Department, the Peru, Illinois Police Department, the LaSalle County, Illinois Sheriff’s Office and the Illinois State Police Offender Registration Unit.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Emily Morgan, Abizer Zanzi and Philip Benson as well as former Assistant United States Attorneys Molly Kelley and Jill Koster.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

###