Pasco County School Employee Arrested on Child Pornography Charges

TAMPA—United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Kenneth Dempsey (52, Port Richey) has been charged in a criminal complaint with receipt and possession of child pornography. If convicted, Dempsey faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years, up to a maximum of 20 years in federal prison. Dempsey was arrested on April 21, 2014, and made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Pizzo. A bond hearing is scheduled for April 24, 2014, at 2:00 p.m.

According to the criminal complaint, between August 2013 and April 2014, Dempsey used the Internet to send and receive multiple images of child pornography from his residence.

A criminal complaint is merely an informal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of the federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Carlton C. Gammons.

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 (CEOS), 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.projectsafechildhood.gov.