Donald Eugene Griffin, Jr., age 43, received a prison sentence of 144 months from United States District Judge Thomas O. Rice for distributing child sexual abuse material. Judge Rice also imposed a lifetime of supervised release, with Griffin required to register as a sex offender.
The investigation began in November 2019, when the FBI identified Griffin’s possession of illicit images. A search warrant executed in March 2020 led to the discovery of multiple images of child sexual abuse material on Griffin’s electronic devices. He confessed to engaging in online activities to access such material and admitted to discussing having sex with a child, distributing, and receiving images of children being sexually abused.
In early 2024, a civilian posed as an 11-year-old girl on Instagram and engaged in chats with Griffin, who sent explicit photos of himself and discussed having sex with her.
Addressing Griffin’s actions, Acting United States Attorney Richard R. Barker stated, “Mr. Griffin’s conduct was predatory and depraved. He not only trafficked in images of children being sexually abused – he actively sought out opportunities to engage with minors online in ways that were both explicit and dangerous.” Special Agent W. Mike Herrington of the FBI’s Seattle field office remarked on the aptness of the sentence's timing, coinciding with Child Abuse Prevention Month.
The case was part of Project Safe Childhood, a Department of Justice initiative started in May 2006, which addresses child exploitation through a combination of federal, state, and local efforts to arrest and prosecute offenders and rescue victims. The Federal Bureau of Investigation led the investigation, while Assistant United States Attorney Rebecca R. Perez prosecuted the case.
For more details on Project Safe Childhood, interested parties can visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
