Jury Convicts Panama City Beach Man of Online Child Exploitation Offenses

PANAMA CITY, FLORIDA – After a one and a half day trial, Brandon Royce Phillips, 34, of Panama City Beach, was convicted yesterday in the U.S. District Court in Panama City of production, receipt, and possession of child pornography.  The verdict was announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

During November 2016, the grandmother of a 14-year-old boy advised the Clay County Sheriff’s Office that an unknown person had sent the boy sexually graphic videos during chats on Kik, a social media application.  The investigation disclosed that Phillips, posing as a 17-year-old female named “Katie Davis,” had sent the boy pornographic videos of a female that Phillips claimed to be “Davis.”  Phillips then convinced the boy to take sexually explicit videos of himself and send them to Phillips via Kik.  Further investigation revealed videos of other children engaged in the same sexually explicit conduct.

Phillips faces a minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 30 years in prison for production of child pornography, a minimum of 5 years and a maximum of 20 years in prison for receipt, and a maximum of 20 years’ imprisonment for possession.  The sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 10, at 2:00 p.m. at the United States Courthouse in Panama City.

The case is being investigated by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, and the Clay County Sheriff’s Office.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Thielemann.

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.