New Orleans Man Charged with Possessing Files Depicting Sexual Victimization of Children

COOPER faces a maximum term of imprisonment of twenty (20) years.  COOPER also faces a lifetime of supervised release, up to a $250,000 fine, and can be required to register as a sex offender.  He also faces payment of a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.

Acting U. S. Attorney Simpson reiterated that a bill of information  is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.  Led by United States Attorneys= Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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.

U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation in investigating this matter.  Assistant United States Attorney Jordan Ginsberg, Chief of the Public Integrity Unit, is in charge of the prosecution.