WASHINGTON, Feb. 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- "John Doe 17," a white male with curly brown hair weighing approximately 210-250 pounds, has been indicted by a federal grand jury for transporting child pornography via the Internet on or about May 5, 2007, Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division Rita M. Glavin and U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein announced today.
This is the seventeenth such case to be investigated and the twelfth prosecuted through the Endangered Child Alert Program (ECAP), which was initiated by the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and the FBI in 2004. The program uses national and international media exposure of unknown adult perpetrators featured in child pornography in an effort to identify, locate, apprehend and prosecute such offenders and to rescue abused children.
The case arose from an investigation of a global enterprise utilizing newsgroups to trade more than 400,000 images of child pornography. An individual in the newsgroup posted two videos of a perpetrator, John Doe #17, engaged in the sexual exploitation of a pre-pubescent female. Forensic analysis of the video clip yielded clear pictures of John Doe #17's profile and other identifying features that will better enable the public to assist with this case without encroaching on the victim's privacy.
If convicted, the defendant faces between five and 20 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine.
In many ECAP cases, the pictures of other John Doe offenders have been featured on the "America's Most Wanted" Web site and television show, as well as "The O'Reilly Factor" television program. Since ECAP's inception, viewers of the television programs and Web site have provided information leading to the investigation and indictment of several other offenders, and at least 30 child victims have been identified.
The prosecution is being handled by CEOS Trial Attorney LisaMarie Freitas and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bonnie Greenberg from the District of Maryland. The investigation is being handled by the FBI's Innocent Images Unit in Calverton, MD.
