Southern Illinois Man Sentenced to 40 Years for Production and Possession of Child Pornography

An Anna, Illinois man, convicted of production of child pornography, was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison on November 3, 2011, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today. Rondale Lee Chapman, 46, of Anna, Illinois, received a 40 year sentence for production and possession of child pornography. Following release from imprisonment, Chapman will serve a lifetime term of supervised release and will be required to register as a sex offender. Chapman was also fined $300 and ordered to pay a $300 special assessment. Chapman pleaded guilty to the charges on July 7, 2011. Chapman has been in custody since his arrest on March 14, 2011. The criminal complaint filed against Chapman alleged that for several years he produced hours of videos of child pornography of males and females. The evidence revealed that he filmed the victims both openly by directing the victims’ actions, as well as secretly. He surreptitiously made a hole in the wall of a bathroom for the purpose of filming minors. Chapman also sexually molested some of the minors he recorded on video.

“Given the length of the sentence, coupled with his age, the public can rest assured that Rondale Lee Chapman will not be ruining any additional young lives,” said United States Attorney Wigginton. “This 40-year sentence is severe, but just, based upon the facts of this case. It should serve as a deterrent to others who are out there thinking about producing child pornography or molesting a child,” added United States Attorney Wigginton.

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. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood 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 case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Union County State’s Attorneys Office, the Union County Sheriff’s Office, and the Jonesboro, Illinois, Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tom Leggans.