Fair Oaks Man Sentenced to Nearly Nine Years in Prison for Distributing Child Pornography

SACRAMENTO, CA—United States District Judge John A. Mendez sentenced Clifford Donald Wells, 56, of Fair Oaks, today to eight years and 10 months in prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release, for distributing child pornography, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.

According to court records, Wells maintained a collection of approximately 6,000 videos and 60,000 still images depicting minors engaged in various types of sexually explicit conduct. He shared and posted the images from his computer to others on the Internet. Wells pleaded guilty to distribution of visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct on October 23, 2012.

This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Prince prosecuted the case.

This case was 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 those who sexually exploit children and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “Resources” tab for information about Internet safety education.