KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Tom Larson, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a St. Joseph, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for attempting to distribute child pornography over the Internet.
Jesse James Gaudette, 40, of St. Joseph, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to seven years and six months in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Gaudette to 10 years of supervised release following incarceration.
On June 6, 2017, Gaudette pleaded guilty to attempting to distribute child pornography over the Internet.
An undercover law enforcement officer in New Haven, Conn., identified Gaudette’s computer utilizing a peer-to-peer file-sharing network. The officer, working undercover, observed Gaudette sharing videos and images of child pornography. According to court documents, officers downloaded at least 109 movie files from Gaudette’s computer on three separate occasions, including movies that were particularly graphic and involved child victims who were very young.
Federal agents executed a search warrant at Gaudette’s residence and seized electronic media. The examination of Gaudette’s electronic media established that Gaudette had no less than 50 videos containing child pornography.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine A. Connelly. It was investigated by the FBI.
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, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
