Naples Man Sentenced To More Than Six Years For Possessing Child Sexual Abuse Images And Videos

Fort Myers, Florida – U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber has sentenced Gavin Michael Harold (23, Naples) to six years and six months in federal prison for possession of images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children. Harold was also sentenced to a lifetime of supervised release and ordered to register as a sex offender. Harold had entered a plea of guilty on November 29, 2023.

According to court documents, between December 2022 through January 2023, an FBI Task Force Agent using a peer-to-peer file sharing program connected to Harold’s computer and downloaded files depicting a child engaged in sexually explicit conduct. On March 20, 2023, the FBI executed a search warrant at Harold’s residence in Naples, Florida, and seized Harold’s laptop computer. A subsequent forensic examination of Harold’s laptop computer revealed in excess of 8,500 images and 450 videos depicting the sexual abuse of young children. 

On March 20, 2023, during an interview with agents, Harold admitted that he had been downloading child pornography for a while. Harold told the agents that he did not let anyone use his laptop and told agents where he stored his collection on his laptop.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Fort Myers Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force, which includes the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office which assisted with this investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yolande G. Viacava.

This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.