Brooksville man pleads guilty to federal child pornography charge

TAMPA – A Brooksville man pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to transportation of child pornography.

Paul Thorpe, 43, faces a mandatory minimum penalty of five years and a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.

According to the plea agreement, an undercover agent downloaded 33 images and a video from an IP address connected to Thorpe, and on Jan. 31 law enforcement seized Thorpe’s computer pursuant to a federal search warrant.

An examination of Thorpe’s computer found 155 images of child pornography, which Thorpe confessed to possessing, receiving, and transporting.

His sentencing date has been set for Oct. 24.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer L. Peresie.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat a 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, go to www.usdoj.gov/psc.