Orlando, Florida - United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Ricky Delano Sheppard (59, Brevard County) has pleaded guilty to receiving child pornography. He faces a mandatory minimum of 5 years, up to 20 years, in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to court records, on June 3, 2016, agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at Sheppard’s residence. At the time, Sheppard was working as a principal at Spessard L. Holland Elementary School. During a forensic examination of Sheppard’s computer media, thousands of images depicting child pornography were located, the majority of which depicted young boys, including toddlers, engaging in explicit sexual acts.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ilianys Rivera Miranda.
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.justice.gov/psc.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
