TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Gregory Carroll Johnson, 40, of Tallahassee, Florida, was sentenced to twenty years in federal prison on charges of conspiracy to produce, distribute, possess, and receive child pornography. The sentence, which followed his guilty plea earlier this year, was announced by Jason R. Coody, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Court documents reflect, in July 2019, representatives of local, state, and federal law enforcement executed a search warrant at Johnson’s residence in Tallahassee. The evidence showed that Johnson had been receiving child pornography from an individual in Atlanta. While conducting the search, however, authorities found messages on Johnson’s phone that demonstrated Johnson and co-defendant Madison King had also conspired to produce child pornography. The recovered evidence included short video clips and pictures that King had taken and transmitted to Johnson depicting the sexual abuse of a toddler. Florida investigators quickly obtained emergency legal process to locate King and contacted their Georgia counterparts. That same day, agents with Homeland Security Investigations, in concert with the Berrien County (Georgia) Sheriff’s Office, executed a search of King’s Nashville, Georgia residence, whereupon the child was rescued.
“There is no greater charge than the protection of our children,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Coody. “This sentence is yet another example of the unwavering commitment to the protection of our most vulnerable and should serve as a significant deterrent to those who would attempt to harm them. Our law enforcement partners are to be commended for the swift, multi-state investigation, which resulted in the immediate rescue of this child, preventing further abuse.”
“During the course of this investigation, a child was saved from this predator thanks to HSI partnerships in our offices in Philadelphia, Atlanta, and here in Tallahassee,” said HSI Tampa Assistant Special Agent in Charge Micah McCombs.
“There is no crime worse than the crimes against our children,” said Berrien County Sheriff Ray Paulk. “I would like to thank our investigators and our District Attorney’s Office for acting swiftly and efficiently in this case to ensure the safety of this child. I also want to thank all of the local, state, and federal law enforcement that worked together in making a case like this priority.” “We couldn’t be more thankful for Acting U.S. Attorney Jason Coody and his staff for securing another conviction in this case, making the world a safer place for our children to live.”
Johnson’s prison sentence will be followed by ten years of supervised release. He will also be required to register as a sex offender and will be subject to all sex offender conditions.
This conviction was the result of an investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Assistant United States Attorneys Meredith L. Steer and Michelle Spaven prosecuted the case.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
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