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U.S. District Judge Terry R. Means awarded the sentence to Douglas Sovereign Smith Jr., 62, following his March 30 guilty plea to one count of receipt and distribution of child pornography. Following his release from federal prison, Smith will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for the rest of his life. In addition, Judge Means ordered that Smith register as a sex offender. Smith must surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on Jan. 6. Smith, of Colleyville, Texas, was employed by the Boy Scouts of America for 39 years. Before retiring in February 2005 following his arrest, Smith held the position of National Director of Programs. According to documents filed in federal court, German police executed a search warrant in November 2003, on the Duesseldorf home of a German man suspected of trafficking in child pornography over the Internet. German police seized the man’s computers and performed forensic analyses on them. The examinations revealed images of child pornography embedded in multiple e-mails which had been received by the German man. These images had also been sent to several e-mail addresses in America. In an undercover operation, German police, posing as this arrested German man, received many e-mails containing child pornography from addresses in America. German police then forwarded this information to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials in the United States, who determined that one of the e-mail addresses, which had received images of child pornography, was registered to Douglas Sovereign Smith Jr. of Colleyville, Texas. Pursuant to a search warrant, which commanded America On Line (AOL) to produce electronically stored data for Smith’s AOL e-mail account, multiple video images of child pornography were discovered. On Feb. 22, 2005, ICE agents executed a search warrant at Smith’s Colleyville home and seized two computers and several computer discs. Forensic analyses of the two hard drives and discs revealed approximately 520 stored images of child pornography, including a movie file. The images of child pornography depicted males under that age of 18 engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Of the 520 images, 111 images were of prepubescent children, under the age of 12, engaged in sexually explicit conduct with other prepubescent children and adults. Since, at least, the Christmas Holidays of 2003, Smith had received, stored, and sent images of child pornography to many e-mail addresses which were part of his AOL “buddy list.” In fact, a separate FBI investigation in Florida revealed that Smith had sent at least 61 images of prepubescent children engaged in sexually explicit conduct to an individual in the Tampa area. “Child pornography has devastating impacts to its innocent victims,” said Kenneth Cates, special agent-in-charge of the ICE Dallas office. “Our ICE special agents have arrested thousands of people nationwide in many occupations following child pornography investigations. Some of those arrested include: school principals, coaches, clergy, and now the case of Douglas Smith who is a former executive with the Boy Scouts of America headquarters. We will continue to act as an active advocate for the silenced children who are unable to fight their victimizers.” “My office is fully committed to implementing every resource available to rid the scourge of child pornography in our region,” said U. S. Attorney Richard Roper. “Those who engage in the possession and/or distribution of child pornography will know the full effects of the federal criminal justice system. Citizens can aid law enforcement by remaining vigilant and reporting suspicious behaviors. Together we can stop the senseless exploitation of children at the hands of those who find gratification in the most heinous of ways.” U.S. Attorney Roper praised the investigative efforts of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bret Helmer prosecuted this case. Mississippi Man Convicted of Possessing Child Porn
Richard Moore, 39, was initially indicted by a federal grand jury in the Northern District of Mississippi on Feb. 24. The U.S. Marshal Service arrested Moore March 9 as he appeared in court for a separate incident. Monroe County Sheriff’s officers and Amory police officers were conducting a burglary investigation at Moore’s residence, which resulted in the seizure of various pieces of evidence, including his personal computer and a printed image of child pornography. ICE special agents joined the investigation to follow up on the child pornography evidence. A forensic examination of Moore’s computer files revealed more than 500 images consisting of child pornography. “Predators exploit children in many different ways, “said Michael A. Holt, ICE New Orleans special agent-in-charge. “ICE will continue to work with U.S. Attorneys and law enforcement agencies to hold accountable those who exploit and prey on the most vulnerable members of our society.” This case is part of ICE's nationwide initiative known as Operation Predator which is designed to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel abroad to have sex with minors. Internet child pornographers and criminal alien sex offenders and child traffickers are also included under this initiative. Since Operation Predator was launched in July 2003, ICE has arrested more than 6,800 individuals nationwide, including 27 in Mississippi. ICE conducted this investigation jointly with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office and the Amory, Mississippi Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul D. Roberts is prosecuting the case. |