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Bradley L. Matthews, 39, of Vandalia, pleaded guilty to child pornography distribution in federal court in East St. Louis on November 2.
According to court documents, Matthews became aware of Matthews in February 2019 during an undercover Internet investigation by the FBI into child pornography. During the investigation, an undercover officer had a conversation with Matthews in which he sent the undercover officer three videos of child pornography. In an interview with law enforcement officers on September 5, 2019, Matthews admitted to distributing child pornography. When he showed the printout of the conversation with the undercover officer on February 5, 2019, Matthews identified himself as the person in the profile picture and admitted that he was the person who had the conversation with the undercover officer and distributed it child pornography videos.
Matthews faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years but no more than 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $ 250,000 and the option of life imprisonment under supervision. The sentencing is scheduled for February 24, 2022 at 10:30 a.m. in East St. Louis.
This case was filed under Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide Justice Department initiative launched in May 2006 to tackle the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Under the direction of U.S. Attorneys and the Criminal Investigation Department’s Department of Child Exploitation and Obscenity, Project Safe Childhood provides state, state, and local resources to find, arrest, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children and identify victims and save. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information on cyber security training, visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click the Resources tab. The case was being investigated by the FBI Springfield Division. Assistant US Attorney Angela Scott is pursuing the case.
https://www.effinghamdailynews.com/news/local_news/vandalia-man-pleads-guilty-to-distribution-of-child-pornography/article_9d5e35c8-3d99-11ec-800e-cf7943a0e58f.html
