Press Release
Van Buren Man Sentenced to Over 8 Years for Child Pornography
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Arkansas
Acting United States Attorney Kenneth Elser
Western District of Arkansas
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Joyce Snow
February 3, 2016 PHONE: (479) 494-4066
TWITTER: @WDARnews
VAN BUREN MAN SENTENCED TO OVER 8 YEARS FOR CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
Fort Smith - Kenneth Elser, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced that Brad Middleton, age 29, of Van Buren, was sentenced yesterday to 100 months in prison and 5 years of supervised release on one count of Distribution of Child Pornography. The Honorable P. K. Holmes, III presided over the sentencing hearing in the United States District Court in Fort Smith.
According to court records, between March 22, 2015, and April 30, 2015, the defendant sent an undercover detective links to thirty one videos depicting minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Records reflect that the IP address from which the videos were sent was associated with the defendant and show that the videos were sent by the defendant while he was in the Fort Smith Division of the Western District of Arkansas. Middleton was indicted by a federal grand jury in July 22, 2015 and pleaded guilty to the charge in September 30, 2015.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, Internet Crimes Against Children, and the Russellville Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Ashleigh Buckley prosecuted the case for the United States.
The 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. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and their Criminal Division Child Exploitation and Obscenity Sections (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood 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.
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Related court documents may be found on Public Access to Electronic Records Website @www.Pacer.gov
Updated February 3, 2016
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