Jason R. Coody, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida
Jesse Roger Armstrong, a 35-year-old former physician from Gainesville, Florida, has been sentenced to 90 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to distributing child pornography. The sentencing was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
According to court documents, Armstrong knowingly uploaded images of child pornography online while searching for additional material. Detectives from the Gainesville Police Department found more files containing child pornography and images depicting sexual bestiality on electronic devices at Armstrong’s residence. At the time of these offenses, Armstrong was completing his residency in the psychiatric division of a local hospital.
U.S. Attorney Heekin stated, “Our state and federal law enforcement partners are committed to identifying, investigating, and rooting out the scourge of exploitation and sexual abuse of children online, and my office will continue to back up those efforts with aggressive prosecutions of anyone found to be peddling in child sexual abuse material. Keeping our kids safe is the highest priority for my office, and it begins with sending predators like this defendant to prison.”
Chief Nelson Moya of the Gainesville Police Department commented on the case: “Keeping our children safe online is a priority. We will continue to pursue anyone who chooses to prey on our children via the internet.”
Nick Ingegno, Assistant Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Tallahassee added: “HSI is committed to protecting children from exploitation, especially when offenders are in trusted roles like physicians. Abusing that trust is unacceptable, and we will continue working with our partners to hold these individuals accountable and safeguard our communities.”
The investigation was conducted jointly by the Gainesville Police Department's Internet Crimes Against Children Unit and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant United States Attorney Adam Hapner prosecuted the case.
This prosecution falls under Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse nationwide by coordinating federal, state, and local resources for investigations and prosecutions. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices serving as principal litigators under direction from the Attorney General. Public court documents are available through the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. Additional details about this office can be accessed at https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndfl.
