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Date: 01-29-2024
Case Style:
Case Number:
Judge: Theodore D. Chuang
Court: The United States Court for District of Maryland
Plaintiff's Attorney: The United States Attorney’s Office for Baltimore
Defendant's Attorney:
Description:
U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang sentenced Tyler Edward Perkins, age 30, of Huntingtown, Maryland, today to seven years in federal prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release, for possession of child pornography. The statement of facts also established that Perkins distributed child sexual abuse material to others and Judge Chuang took that into account in imposing today’s sentence. Judge Chuang also ordered that Perkins must pay restitution of $12,000 and upon his release from prison, Perkins will be required to register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; Colonel Roland L. Butler, Jr., Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; and Calvert County State’s Attorney Robert Harvey.
According to his guilty plea agreement, Perkins was an instructional assistant at a school for children requiring special education services. On June 1, 2022, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Perkins’s residence after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received CyberTips from the instant messaging platform Kik, that accounts associated with usernames, which investigation determined were controlled by Perkins, had uploaded files containing child pornography to Kik. Kik also determined that many of the uploaded files were distributed to other users in private chats.
Law enforcement investigating the CyberTips were able to identify Perkins’s residence as being associated with the distribution of child pornography. During the search of his residence, law enforcement seized several electronic devices. A digital forensic examination of the devices revealed that they contained at least 600 images of child sexual abuse material, including videos, documenting the sexual abuse of minors, including prepubescent minors. Further, some of the material portrayed sadistic or masochistic conduct. The investigation did not reveal any evidence of Perkins committing any sexual assault or having illegal contact with any child.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the “Resources” tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended HSI, the Maryland State Police Computer Crimes Unit and Maryland State Apprehension Team, and the Calvert County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher M. Sarma and Timothy F. Hagan, who prosecuted the federal case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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