Manuel Perez Gonzalez, 39, of Miami, was sentenced yesterday to 100 years in prison, by U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungaro, after having been convicted at trial of distribution, receipt and possession of child pornography. Gonzalez was also sentenced to 25 years of supervised release and ordered to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Mark Selby, Special Agent in Charge, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcements Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), Brian Swain, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service (USSS), Miami Field Office, Juan J. Perez, Director, Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD), and Daniel J. Oates, Chief, Miami Beach Police Department (MBPD), made the announcement.
According to court documents and evidence at trial, on Oct. 22, 2015, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Gonzalezs home after receiving information that a computer user at the residence was downloading child pornography. While executing the search warrant, agents found Gonzalezs laptop and a backup disc from another computer. A forensic examination of the devices revealed photographs of Gonzalez and evidence of the defendants use of social media. In addition, the forensic examination revealed numerous videos and images of child pornography. Residents from the searched home testified that Gonzalez used the laptop that was found to contain pornographic images.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI, USSS, MDPD, and MBPD. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Kobrinski, Benjamin Widlanski, and Ignacio Vazquez.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
--DOJ Southern District of Florida
Source: U.S. Secret Service