San Francisco Resident Sentenced To Six Years In Prison For Possessing And Distributing Child Pornography

SAN FRANCISCO – Gerard Jones was sentenced today to 72 months in prison for distributing and possessing child pornography, announced United States Attorney Alex G. Tse and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Ryan L. Spradlin.  The sentence was handed down by the Honorable Vince Chhabria, U.S. District Judge.

Jones, 60, of San Francisco, pleaded guilty to the charges on April 2, 2018.  In pleading guilty, Jones admitted that on September 13, 2016, officers from the San Francisco Police Department Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Unit received a tip that a social media account holder uploaded a video of suspected child pornography to a private on-line channel.  An investigation resulted in a search of Jones’s San Francisco residence and the discovery of numerous electronic devices containing tens of thousands of images and hundreds of videos of child pornography.  

A federal grand jury indicted Jones on February 7, 2017, charging him with one count each of distributing child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(2), and possession of child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(4)(B).  Jones pleaded guilty to both charges.  

In addition to the prison term, Judge Chhabria sentenced the defendant to a five-year period of supervised release and ordered Jones to pay an assessment of $10,200.  Judge Chhabria also scheduled a hearing for October 4, 2018, to determine the amount of restitution to be paid to his victims.  The defendant was ordered to begin serving his sentence on November 30, 2018.   

Assistant United States Attorney Meredith Osborn is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Lance Libatique.  The prosecution is the result of an investigation by HIS with assistance from the ICAC.