Colorado Springs Man Sentenced to 30 years in Federal Prison for Child Pornography Production and Possession

Denver – The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announces that Brandon Gandy, 34 years old, of Colorado Springs was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for production and possession of child pornography.

According to an earlier plea agreement, the defendant came to law enforcement’s attention after an internet service provider submitted multiple CyberTipline Reports to the “National Center for Missing and Exploited Children” between October 2018 and October 2019. The reports detailed the user uploading sexually explicit pictures depicting minors to the internet. Investigators tracked the user to a Colorado Springs address.

On March 4, 2021, investigators searched the address for child pornography. The defendant was present at the home when the search warrant was executed. Investigators did a forensic review of the defendant’s cell phone on scene and discovered that the defendant had been creating sexually explicit pictures of a minor victim. The minor victim was identified. Additional forensic examination of the defendant’s phone and review of his Google Photos account revealed that he had created numerous images and videos depicting his sexual abuse and exploitation of the minor victim over the course of one year. The defendant admitted the minor was under the age of 12 at the time he produced the child pornography images and videos.

In addition to the 30 years in prison, the defendant will serve a 10 year term of supervised release and is ordered to pay a $20,000 special assessment pursuant to the Amy, Vicky, and Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act (AVAA).

“The details of this case are disturbing, and we commend our partners in law enforcement for their detailed investigation that put a stop to the defendant’s sick and outrageous conduct,” said United States Attorney Cole Finegan. “This lengthy prison sentence sends a message to the community that we will track down and prosecute anyone victimizing the young and vulnerable.”

“Our agents work night and day to keep Colorado free from people like Gandy who seek to abuse and exploit children,” said Ryan L. Spradlin, Special Agent in Charge, HSI Denver. “Today’s sentence highlights the commitment our investigators, prosecutors from the United States Attorney’s Office and law enforcement partners have to the children in our community.”

The Honorable Judge Daniel D. Domenico presided over the case and sentenced the defendant on May 10, 2022.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Colorado Springs Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney Alecia L. Riewerts prosecuted the case.

This case 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 Attorney’s 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.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.      

Case #21-cr-00096-DDD

###