LOS ANGELES – A former Long Beach Police officer pleaded guilty today to a federal criminal charge for distributing child pornography, including when he was on duty as a law enforcement officer.
Anthony Brown, 57, of Lakewood, pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of child pornography.
According to his plea agreement, Brown used his smart phone to log into MeWe, an internet-based messaging application, including when he was on duty as a Long Beach Police officer. While logged in, Brown knowingly distributed and possessed child pornography.
Brown admitted in his plea agreement to distributing sexually explicit images of girls in November 2019, March 2020 and April 2020.
From October 2019 through May 2020, Brown also knowingly possessed a sexually explicit image of a girl who appeared to be 11 or 12 years old.
Brown was a Long Beach Police officer for 27 years. He left the force last year after his arrest on state charges of possession and distribution of child pornography. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office dismissed those charges in light of the federal case.
United States District Judge André Birotte Jr. has scheduled a July 25 sentencing hearing, at which time Brown will face a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison and a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
Homeland Security Investigations and the Long Beach Police Department investigated this matter.
Assistant United States Attorney Kathrynne N. Seiden of the General Crimes Section is prosecuting this case.