AUBURN GRADUATE CHARGED WITH CHILD PORNOGRAPHY

BIRMINGHAM, AL - JONATHAN WRYN  VANCE, 24, of Auburn, Alabama, was charged with production of child pornography and attempted enticement in United States District Court, Northern District of Alabama.  The charges are announced today by U.S. Attorney Alice H. Martin and Special Agent in Charge, Carmen S. Adams, Federal Bureau of Investigation.

According to the Indictment, VANCE used the internet to contact at least 17 females, ranging in age from 14 to 26 years old.  Using the Internet, VANCE sent communications containing threats and attempted to entice female minors to engage in sexual activity.  In addition, VANCE used the Internet to extort Yahoo!, Hotmail, Facebook and AOL accounts and passwords.  VANCE attempted to coerce minor females to produce images of child pornography.

“I encourage parents to continually monitor the online activity of their children and be vigilant for sexual predators who may be attempting to target their children through social networking web sites such as MySpace and Facebook,” stated United States Attorney Alice H. Martin. “Any suspicious activity involving a possible sexual predator should immediately be reported to the FBI or your local police department.”

VANCE faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison, and up to 30 years for Production of Child Pornography; a maximum of life in prison for Attempted Enticement; up to 5 years in prison for Fraud and related activity in connection with identification documents, authentication features, information, and Interstate communications; and a maximum of 2 years for Interstate transportation and Interstate communications.

This matter was investigated by the Tuscaloosa Police Department, the Hoover Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Daniel J. Fortune is prosecuting this case on behalf of the United States.

This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood initiative and our continuing efforts to target individuals who possess and distribute child pornography. In February 2006, former Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices nationwide, 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 about the national Project Safe Childhood initiative, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.

Members of the public are reminded that an indictment contains only charges.  A defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.