FOUR MEN INDICTED FOR VARIOUS ONLINE CHILD EXPLOITATION OFFENSES

SAVANNAH: Edmund A. Booth, Jr., Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, today announced that a federal grand jury sitting in Savannah, Georgia, has returned four separate indictments against four individuals throughout the Southern District for various child exploitation offenses. Among the indictments, there were two indictments returned against two Savannah area residents, Peter J. Mitchell, age 69, and Paul M. Chastain, age 24. Mitchell was charged with one count of possessing child pornography, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252A, and three counts of receiving child pornography, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252A. Chastain was charged with one count of possessing child pornography and 43 counts or receiving child pornography. Both men are scheduled to be arraigned at 2:30 on April 18, 2007, before United States Magistrate Judge G.R. Smith in Savannah, Georgia.

The federal grand jury also returned an indictment against a Camden County resident, Timothy P. Green, age 42, of Kingsland, Georgia. Green was charged with one count of possessing child pornography and eight counts of receiving child pornography. Green was arraigned on April 17, 2007, before United States Magistrate Judge James E. Graham in Brunswick, Georgia. He was subsequently released on a $50,000 bond and placed on electronic monitoring. In addition, the federal grand jury also returned an indictment against a Richmond County resident, Tommy Drawdy, age 31, of Augusta. Drawdy was charged with one count of possessing child pornography and 15 counts of transporting and shipping child pornography via computer, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252A. Drawdy was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge W. Leon Barfield on April 18, 2007, in Augusta, Georgia. The court released Drawdy on a $10,000 bond with 10% security required to be posted, placed him on electronic monitoring, imposed a curfew except for work related time, and ordered that he have no unsupervised contact with children.

If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of not more than ten (10) years imprisonment on the possession of child pornography charges and imprisonment for not less than five (5) years and not more than twenty (20) years for the charges of receiving or transporting child pornography. In addition, the defendants would be subject to a fine of up to $250,000 and a $100 special assessment on each count. Furthermore, each charge permits a court to impose life-time supervised release.

These cases were brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.

Booth noted that these indictments were the result of a joint investigative effort by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, and several local police agencies, including the Kingsland Police Department and the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office. The lead investigators were Special Agents Thomas D. West, Gregory C. Ricks, and Jeremi Blankley of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, Special Agents Joshua Hayes and David M. Crisafi of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Detective James Galloway of the Kingsland Police Department who assisted in the case against Timothy Green.

Booth emphasized that an indictment is only an accusation and is not evidence of guilt. Each defendant is entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the Government’s burden to prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The Government is being represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephen K. Marsh and Jeffrey J. Buerstatte

####

14-07.