Burke County man sentenced to more than 16 years in prison for coercing a child into producing child pornography

AUGUSTA, GA:  A Burke County man has been sentenced to federal prison after admitting he coerced a child to produce sexually explicit images.

Keyshawn Omar Cooper, 21, of Waynesboro, Ga., was sentenced to 200 months in prison after previously pleading guilty to Production of Child Pornography, said Jill E. Steinberg, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. U.S. District Court Chief Judge J. Randal Hall also ordered Cooper to pay $3,000 in restitution, and to serve 15 years of supervised release and register as a sex offender after completion of his prison term.

There is no parole in the federal system.

“This predatory crime represents a nightmare scenario for parents whose children connect with others to play games over the internet,” said U.S. Attorney Steinberg. “Thanks to the vigilance of one of those parents and diligent law enforcement partners, Keyshawn Cooper is no longer a danger to children.”

As described in court, in May 9, 2021, Cooper communicated via an internet application with an 11-year-old child in Missouri, and persuaded the victim to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of creating visual depictions that the victim then sent to Cooper. The child’s mother discovered the activity and reported it to police in Cape Girardeau, Mo., who enlisted the assistance of the FBI in identifying and locating Cooper.

The investigation determined that the child and Cooper met online while playing the “Grand Theft Auto” video game, and Cooper pretended to be a young girl to persuade the child to send sexually explicit photos. Agents found those images, along with other sexually explicit images of children, saved on a phone seized from Cooper.

“The internet is a very important and useful resource, but unfortunately can also be used for illegal activity as criminals like Cooper seek to prey on the most vulnerable of our population,” said Brian Ozden, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Let this be a reminder to parents and caregivers, people can pretend to be anyone online, and you need to remain vigilant with monitoring your child’s online gaming activity and educating them about the risks of communicating with strangers.”

The case was investigated by the Cape Girardeau, Mo., Police Department and the FBI, and prosecuted for the United States by First Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara M. Lyons.

Anyone with information on suspected child sexual exploitation can contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 800-843-5678, or https://report.cybertip.org/.