Four Area People Face Federal Child Pornography Charges
FBI St. Louis January 06, 2009 |
St. Louis, MO: Four St. Louis area people have been face charges of possession and receipt of child pornography, United States Attorney Catherine L. Hanaway announced today.
MATTHEW SULLIVAN, Florissant, Missouri, was sentenced to 63 months in prison, followed by 20 years of supervised release for possession of child pornography.
KRISTINA GETTEMEIER, St. Louis, Missouri, was sentenced in late December to 33 months in prison, followed by 15 years of supervised release for possession of child pornography.
KHALED KHALIFA, St. Louis, Missouri, was indicted last week on two felony counts of possession of child pornography.
JAMES F. HEYMANN III, St. Louis, Missouri, was indicted last week on four felony counts of possession of child pornography.
If convicted, each count of possession of child pornography carries a maximum penalty of ten years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000.
These cases are 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.
Hanaway commended the work performed on the case by the St. Louis County Police Department, St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Missouri Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Regional Computer Crimes Education and Enforcement Group and Assistant United States Attorneys Carrie Costantin and Ray Meyer, who are handling the cases for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations, and each defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.