A Hephzibah man who pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography has been sentenced to 80 months in prison.
Justin Bryan, 34, was also ordered to pay $18,000 in restitution to victims, according to a news release from David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. Once Bryan completes the prison term, he will also serve 15 years of supervised release. In the federal system there is no parole. Bryan will also be required to register as a sex offender.
“Each time an image of sexual exploitation is shared on the internet, a vulnerable child is revictimized,” Estes said in the news release. “We applaud the work of our law enforcement partners and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in identifying predators like Justin Bryan, and our office will continue to ensure they are held accountable for their crimes.”
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In December 2020, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a cyber tip identifying online images of child pornography, and the center alerted the FBI. Agents later located and arrested Bryan and seized multiple electronic devices that were found to contain hundreds of videos and images depicting sexual exploitation of children.
“This sentence demonstrates the determination of the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office to find those who prey on children in our communities and bring them to justice,” said Philip Wislar, acting Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Our message to these predators is you cannot hide behind the ‘anonymity’ of the internet.”
