A Burke County man has been sentenced to more than 10 years in federal prison. The sentencing comes after he plead guilty to charges of distribution of child pornography.
Kadarion Davonte Ellison, 27, of Waynesboro, was sentenced to 126 months in prison, said Jill E. Steinberg, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. Ellison, who worked as a patient care technician at an Augusta hospital, was ordered by U.S. District Court Judge J. Randal Hall to register as a sex offender and has to serve 20 years of supervised release upon completion of his prison sentence.
There is no parole in the federal system.
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“Child victims are subjected to endless trauma each time their images are shared online,” said Steinberg. “We applaud the vigilance of our law enforcement partners in identifying these predators for the protection of our most vulnerable citizens.”
According to court documents and testimony, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents detected child sexual abuse material being transferred via an internet application. With help from the Waynesboro Police Department, the HSI investigators determined Ellison was purchasing and distributing child pornography online. Multiple electronic devices found to contain thousands of videos and images of child sexual abuse material were seized by investigators during a search of Ellison’s residence.
Ellison was ordered by Judge Hall to pay $60,000 in restitution to victims identified during the investigation with the assistance of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
“Finding and stopping those involved in the distribution of these disturbing images of children is one of our highest priorities,” said Anthony J. Patrone, acting special agent in charge of HSI Atlanta that covers Georgia and Alabama. “I am appreciative of the amazing support of our law enforcement partners and the great work done on this case.”
Homeland Security Investigations and the Waynesboro Police Department investigate the case, which prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney and Project Safe Childhood Coordinator Jason W. Blanchard.
Anyone with information on suspected child sexual exploitation can contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 800-843-5678, or https://report.cybertip.org/.
