SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - An Aurora, Missouri, man has been sentenced in federal court for receiving and distributing child pornography.
Michael Steven Copfer, 38, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes on Monday, Feb. 24, to 12 years and seven months in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Copfer to 15 years of supervised release following incarceration. Copfer will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison and will be subject to federal and state sex offender registration requirements, which may apply throughout his life.
On Sept. 9, 2019, Copfer pleaded guilty to one count of receiving and distributing child pornography. Copfer was identified by law enforcement after Google discovered files containing images of child pornography stored in Copfer’s Google Photos account.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force.
Project Safe Childhood
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, 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.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
