TALLAHASSEE, FL – LAWFUEL – The Law Newswire – Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum, Acting U.S.
Attorney James R. Klindt, and Michael J. Folmar, Special Agent in Charge of the Jacksonville Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that a St. Johns County man pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Jacksonville to possession of matters containing visual depictions of child pornography. Darrell Mark Krause, 42, was arrested at his residence in north St. Johns County in May 2007. Court documents charged that on March 7, 2007, Krause knowingly possessed matters which contained visual depictions that had been shipped and transported in interstate and foreign commerce, the production of which visual depictions involved the use of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
According to the plea agreement filed today, a computer seized from Krause’s residence on March 7, 2007 contained in excess of 15,000 images and 400 videos depicting child pornography. In addition, the plea agreement requires the forfeiture of Krause’s residence as well as his computer and three other hard disk drives. Krause faces a maximum penalty of up to 10 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine and a term of supervised release of not less than five years and up to life. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
The case was investigated by the Child Predator CyberCrime Unit of the Florida Attorney General’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown is handling the prosecution of this case.
“The CyberCrime Unit will continue to bring these cases for Federal prosecution because we believe nothing is more serious than the sexual exploitation of our youngest citizens,” said Attorney General McCollum. “I appreciate the determined efforts made by the U.S. Attorney’s Office to keep these individuals away from our children.”
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales created Project Safe Childhood, a national initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information on Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The Florida Attorney General’s Child Predator CyberCrime Unit is a member of the North Florida Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, a federally funded program working nationwide to educate and support law enforcement to stop these crimes, and the FBI Cyber Task Force in Jacksonville. The unit has made 48 arrests since October 2005 and has referred several cases to be prosecuted by Federal authorities. More information on the Florida Attorney General’s CyberCrime initiative is available at http://www.myfloridalegal.com.
