Omaha Man Sentenced on Child Pornography Charges

United States Attorney Deborah Gilg, Nebraska State Patrol and the FBI announce the following information for the attention of the media:

Event triggering this release:

Gary E. McGaa, 40, was sentenced for the receipt and attempted distribution of child pornography. The Honorable Laurie Smith Camp sentenced McGaa to seven years' imprisonment. After his release from prison, McGaa will begin a five-year term of supervised release. In addition to registering as a sex offender, he will also be restricted in his access to children and places where children gather.

In October, 2009 an investigator with the Nebraska State Patrol and FBI Cyber Crimes Task Force was conducting investigations into individuals seeking and sharing videos of child pornography on the Internet. A computer belonging to McGaa was identified as having images of child pornography available for download.

On May 19, 2010, members of the Cyber Crimes Task Force (CCTF) served a search warrant at McGaa’s residence. They located a computer that was actively searching and downloading images of child pornography. Child pornography videos were located on the hard drive of the computer, a USB drive, and a CD.

This 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 United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (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.

This matter was investigated by the Omaha FBI’s Cyber Crime Task Force, of which the Nebraska State Patrol is a partner. The Omaha CCTF is a multi-jurisdictional task force consisting of 11 federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies from Nebraska and Iowa. The mission of the Omaha CCTF is to investigate and apprehend high-technology criminals and to protect our communities by preventing high-technology crime and national security threats involving computers and computer networks. The Omaha CCTF was established on the premise that the capabilities of law enforcement agencies to investigate computer and high technology related crimes are enhanced in a task force setting involving the sharing of resources and expertise.

Name of Defendant: Gary McGaa
AKA:
Age: 40
City of residence: Omaha, Nebraska
Crime(s) Charged and Potential Penalty (A CHARGE is merely an accusation and every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty): Receipt and distribution child pornography; 5-20 years imprisonment; $250,000, five years' life supervised release and a $100 special assessment.
Specific Location of Alleged Crime: Omaha, Nebraska
Location of Arrest: Omaha, Nebraska
Alleged Dollar Loss/Type and Quantity of Drug:
Others Charged in Same Scheme:

Relevant Dates:
Date of Alleged Crime: On and before the May 19, 2010
Federal Arrest Date: October 28, 2010
Date Complaint Issued: N/A
Indictment Returned Date: October 19, 2010
Initial Appearance Date: October 28, 2010
Plea or Trial and Date(s): Plead guilty on January 4, 2011
Sentencing Date: April 11, 2011
Next Court Hearing Type and Date: N/A

Assigned Magistrate Judge: F.A. Gossett III
Held without Bond, or Released from Custody: Released from Custody
In Continuous Custody Since:
Assigned District Court Judge: Laurie Smith Camp
Initials of Assigned AUSA/Preparer of this Release: MPN