Fresno Man Pleads Guilty to Receiving Child Pornography

FRESNO, CA—United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced that Justin Paul Gladding, 36, of Fresno, pleaded guilty today to receiving child pornography.

According to the plea agreement, Gladding received via the Internet more than 600 images and videos depicting minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct including some that involved the portrayal of sadistic, masochistic, and other depictions of violence. Many of the minors depicted were prepubescent minors.

Gladding is scheduled to be sentenced before United States District Judge Oliver W. Wanger on December 12, 2011. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and a lifetime term of supervised release. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory sentencing factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Fresno Police Department, and the California Department of Justice. Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy R. Jehangiri and Special Assistant United States Attorney Jared D. Renfro are prosecuting the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC mobilizes federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information, visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov or call the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California and ask to speak with the PSC coordinator.