Coeur d’Alene Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing More Than 3,500 Images of Child Pornography

COEUR D’ALENE—Brian Daniel Rowe, 28, of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, pleaded guilty yesterday in United States District Court in Coeur d’Alene to possession of sexually explicit images of minors, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Rowe was charged by indictment on January 15, 2013.

According to the plea agreement, Rowe admitted that in July 2012, he possessed a computer and a smart phone that contained more than 3,500 sexually explicit images of minors. When Rowe was interviewed by investigators, he admitted that he had been downloading sexually explicit images of minors for years.

Authorities were alerted to Rowe’s illegal behavior earlier in 2012, when they received information that Rowe was making child pornography available to others on an Internet peer-to-peer network. Following an investigation, investigators executed a search warrant at Rowe’s residence and seized computers and his smart phone.

The charge of possessing sexually explicit images of minors is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and a minimum term of five years up to lifetime supervised release. The government is seeking forfeiture of the computer equipment used in the offense.

Sentencing is set is set for August 19, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the federal courthouse in Coeur d’Alene.

“Those who victimize children by possessing and distributing images of children being sexually abused will be identified, investigated, and prosecuted,” said Olson. “Today’s guilty plea sends the strong message that law enforcement throughout Idaho will work in an efficient and coordinated manner to bring these predators to justice.”

The case was investigated by the Idaho Attorney General’s Office, Meridian Police Department, Coeur d’Alene Police Department, Nampa Police Department, Kootenai County Prosecutor’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and United States Secret Service. The agencies are members of the Idaho Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, a statewide coalition of local, state, and federal law enforcement and prosecution agencies focused on apprehending and prosecuting individuals who use the Internet to criminally exploit children. For more information about the Idaho ICAC Task Force and a list of participating agencies, visit www.icacidaho.org.

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