Two Fresno County Men Plead Guilty to Child Pornography Offenses

FRESNO, CA—United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced that two defendants in separate cases pleaded guilty today to child pornography offenses. Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy R. Jehangiri is prosecuting both cases.

U.S. v. Montoya; 1:11-cr-195-AWI
In the first case, Jimmie Joe Montoya, 59, of Clovis, pleaded guilty to possession of material depicting a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct. According to the plea agreement, Montoya possessed on his computer more than 600 images and videos depicting minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Many of the minors depicted were prepubescent.

Montoya is scheduled to be sentenced on April 9, 2012 before Chief United States District Judge Anthony W. Ishii. Montoya faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and a lifetime term of supervised release. The actual sentence 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 result of Operation Direct Connect, an extensive series of investigations by the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. The Fresno Police Department also investigated this case.

U.S. v. Green; 1:11-cr-044-AWI
In the second case, Edward Joseph Green, 44, of Fresno, pleaded guilty to receiving visual depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. According to the plea agreement, Green received on his computer more than 600 images and videos depicting minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. The images and videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct also involved the portrayal of sadistic, masochistic, and other depictions of violence. Green received the child pornography on his computer. Many of the minors depicted were prepubescent minors.

Green is scheduled to be sentenced on April 9, 2012 by Chief United States District Judge Anthony W. Ishii. The maximum penalty for receipt of a visual depiction of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct is 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and a lifetime term of supervised release. The actual sentence 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 result of an extensive investigation by the FBI, the Fresno Police Department, and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department.

Both cases were 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 the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please 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.