Registered Sex Offender Sentenced To 20 Years In Federal Prison For Child Pornography

PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Nicholas Allen Walker, 30, of Pensacola, Florida, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison after previously pleading guilty to receiving and distributing child pornography. The sentence was announced by Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

“Protecting innocent children from sexual predators remains one of our highest priorities,” said U.S. Attorney Coody. “I commend our law enforcement partners and prosecutors who work diligently to identify these predators and bring them to justice so that they can no longer exploit any child again. Due to their efforts, our community is safer, and this repeat offender is exactly where he belongs – back behind bars.”

On January 28, 2021, and February 18, 2021, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received information from a social media company regarding the defendant uploading files of child pornography. On April 8, 2021, investigators with the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office interviewed the defendant and obtained a search warrant for his cellular telephone. The search of his cellular telephone revealed between December 16, 2020, and April 8, 2021, the defendant received and distributed numerous images and videos of child pornography using a social media application and text messages. 

Walker is a registered sex offender based on a prior state of Florida conviction relating to the offense of traveling to engage in sexual activity with a minor.

“This sentencing confirms that the FBI and our partners will stop at nothing to protect our children from predators who seek to exploit them," said Sherri E. Onks, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Jacksonville.  "Together, we have ensured one less predator is victimizing the most innocent and vulnerable members of our community.”

Walker’s prison sentence will be followed by a Lifetime of supervised release. Walker will continue to be required to register as a sex offender and be subject to all sex offender conditions.

This conviction was the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey M. Tharp prosecuted the case.

This case was 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 and led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), it 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.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.