Elmira Man Sentenced To 188 Months In Federal Prison For Production Of Child Pornography

CONTACT:      Barbara Burns
PHONE:         (716) 843-5817
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ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Shannon T. Lewis, 41 of Elmira, NY, who was convicted of production of child pornography, was sentenced to 188 months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Charles J. Siragusa. The defendant was also placed on supervised release for a period of 30 years and was required to register as a sexual offender. The Court also ordered that the defendant forfeit the digital materials used commit the crime.

“This defendant is currently serving two and a half years in state prison on a rape conviction,” said U.S. Attorney Hochul. “Under federal law, Lewis was sentenced to more than 15 years for recording his sexual abuse of a minor. I applaud the diligent investigation conducted by the FBI and Elmira Police Department which led to a successful prosecution and today’s end result.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig R. Gestring, who handled the case, stated that Lewis was first identified during a sexual assault investigation being conducted by the Elmira Police Department. Officers learned that the defendant harbored at risk minors who ran away from a nearby juvenile facility. While in his custody, Lewis gave the minors drugs, including bath salts. Investigators also learned that the defendant and another adult raped one of the minors, a 16 year old girl, and that Lewis videotaped the rape. Police then contacted the Corning Resident Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation for assistance.

During the investigation, several homemade, sexually explicit videos of the child were found on the defendant’s computer. The videos showed Lewis hiding the camera in his room before bringing the child in and raping her. The defendant was also seen giving the child victim bath salts before, during, and after the rape.

Lewis was convicted of Rape in Chemung County and is presently serving a sentence of two and a half years in State Prison for that offense.

The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Corning Resident Office, and members of the Elmira Police Department, under the direction of Chief Michael Robertson.