Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven has sentenced Kenneth Minnick (43, Fort Myers) to 20 years in federal prison for receiving and possessing images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children. 

Minnick had pleaded guilty on December 12, 2018.

According to court documents, between September 16 and October 25, 2016, the FBI downloaded multiple child pornography files from an Internet Protocol address associated with Minnick’s residence. On December 9, 2016, the FBI and local law enforcement executed a search warrant on Minnick’s home and seized his computer and two flash drives. A forensic analysis of the devices revealed 253 images and 13 videos of child pornography. Some of the images and videos depicted infants, toddlers and pre-school age children engaging in sex acts.

"Together with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners, we are taking action to protect our children from sexual exploitation and abuse," said Eric Sporre, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Tampa Division. "I would like to thank all the investigators, attorneys and other professional staff who do this difficult but extremely important work."

This case was investigated by the FBI’s Innocent Images Task Force in Fort Myers, which includes the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, the Sarasota Police Department, the Cape Coral Police Department, and the Bradenton Police Department. The New York Police Department also assisted with this case. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Charlie D. Connally and Jennifer Peresie.

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 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 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.