A Tupelo, Mississippi man has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for coercing more than 46 minor girls into sending sexually explicit images and videos through an online application. Sean Carson, 24, targeted girls as young as 12. According to court documents, when victims tried to stop communicating with him, Carson threatened to share the explicit content with their families unless they continued to engage with him and provide more material. The FBI identified 46 of about 100 victims in the case.
Senior Judge Michael P. Mills imposed a sentence of 240 months in prison and ordered a lifetime of supervised release for Carson. After completing his sentence, Carson will be required to register as a sex offender in any location where he lives, works, or attends school. His access to electronic devices will also be restricted during his supervised release.
“Significant sentences like the one handed down to Sean Carson help to ensure that our children are protected from sexual predators who lure children and then attempt to keep them silent,” said U.S. Attorney Clay Joyner. “AUSA Parker King and our partners at the FBI did some exceptional work in order to prove a difficult case, and this sentence should act as a deterrent to other would be predators as well.”
"This sentence underscores the FBI's commitment to protect our children from sexual exploitation,” stated Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Jackson Field Office Robert Eikhoff. “The message is clear, vile predators like Sean Carson will be held to the highest extent of the law. The FBI maintains a commitment to support the USAO and the Tupelo Police Department in aggressively investigating and protecting the innocence of our minors, assuring offenders are brought to justice."
The investigation was conducted by the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Parker S. King prosecuted the case.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) that coordinates federal, state, and local efforts against child sexual exploitation online. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
