Baltimore, Maryland – A federal grand jury in Maryland has returned an indictment charging Gary Rocky Jones, age 41, of Baltimore, Maryland, with distribution and possession of child pornography.  The indictment was returned and Jones was arrested on September 1, 2020.  Jones had his initial appearance today in U.S. District Court in Baltimore.  U.S. Magistrate Judge Beth P. Gesner ordered that Jones be detained pending a detention hearing scheduled for September 9, 2020 at 11:30 a.m.

The indictment was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Special Agent in Charge Jennifer C. Boone of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department.

According to the two-count indictment, on April 2, 2018, Jones distributed a video of an adult male sexually assaulting a prepubescent male.  From January 22, 2020, through January 31, 2020, Jones allegedly used an internet-based file storage account affiliated with his e-mail addresses which contained one or more images of child pornography, including images of prepubescent minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Jones has previous convictions for aggravated sexual abuse of a minor or abusive sexual conduct involving a minor.  Specifically, on July 21, 2004, and June 8, 2006, in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, Jones was convicted of two counts of assault in the second degree and two counts of sexual offense in the second degree, respectively.

If convicted, Jones faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum sentence of 40 years in federal prison for distribution of child pornography; and a mandatory minimum of 10 years and a maximum of 20 years in federal prison for possession of child pornography.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.  

An indictment is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.  For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.   

United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended the FBI and the Baltimore Police Department Sex Offender Registry Unit for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Budlow, who is prosecuting the case.

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