June 19, 2014

Richmond Man Previously Convicted of Aggravated Sex Crimes Against a Juvenile Sentenced for Distribution of Child Pornography

RICHMOND, VA—Robert Cole Johnson, 55, of Richmond, Virginia, was sentenced to 180 months’ imprisonment on June 18, 2014, in U.S. District Court for distributing child pornography. Dana J. Boente, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; and Mark Herring, Attorney General of Virginia, made the announcement after the defendant was sentenced by United States District Judge John A. Gibney.

The defendant pled guilty on March 10, 2014, to distributing child pornography. According to court documents, the defendant was identified during an undercover investigation by law enforcement officers into the trading of child pornography over the Internet. In April 2013, an officer downloaded four files depicting child pornography from a computer that was later tracked to the defendant’s residence in Richmond, Virginia. Based on this information, officers obtained a search warrant for the defendant’s residence, which was executed in May 2013. During the execution of the warrant, the defendant admitted searching for and downloading child pornography from the Internet. He also admitted allowing other users to download files from his computer. The defendant has prior convictions for rape, sodomy, and aggravated sexual battery of a 10-year-old female in 1985 and for failing to register properly with the Virginia Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry in 2013.

The case was investigated by the Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Special Assistant United States Attorney Tommy Johnstone of the Virginia Attorney General’s Office prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae