A 32-year-old Colorado Springs man has been indicted for the sexual exploitation of children along with child porn charges by a federal grand jury. A forensic analyst said he had one of the largest collections of toddler videos he had ever seen.
Justin Craig Smith was also indicted on the charges of Distribution and Possession of Child Pornography along with the Sexual Exploitation of Children.
According to the indictment, Smith is accused of attempting and using two minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing child porn. He is accused of doing that from July 2010 through April 2011.
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Smith is also accused of knowingly distributing and attempting to distribute child porn.
Additionally, authorities said he was found to be in possession of child porn.
It was Dec. 2012 when a local law enforcement agency did a search warrant at Smith’s Colorado Springs home. This was after an investigation found that he was using a peer-to-peer system to share child porn, authorities said.
The investigation also revealed that Smith had photographed his sexual assault of a minor child that was 8 years old, authorities said. He is also accused of taking ‘lascivious’ photographs of another child, who is now 12 years old, for a period of years.
Authorities said Smith made his young victims watch the tapes of child porn.
Forensic evaluation of Smith’s computer found not only images of his sexual molestation but also one of the largest collections of toddler videos that the forensic analyst had ever seen.
Smith was arrested on molestation charges after the search warrant execution. That case is still pending, authorities said.
“Mr. Smith engaged in the sexual assault and exploitation of two young children to produce child pornography,” said U.S. Attorney John Walsh. “This case should send a strong message to those who sexually prey on our children that they will get caught and they will be punished.”
“Only those predators who produce child pornography really know what perverted logic they use to rationalize the horrific trauma they permanently inflict on innocent children,” said Kumar C. Kibble, special agent in charge of HSI Denver. “However, our special agents with Homeland Security Investigations derive great satisfaction from rescuing these children from their living nightmare, and pursuing prosecution against their victimizers.”
Should Smith be convicted of sexual exploitation, he faces 15-30 years in federal prison in addition to a fine of up to $250,000 for each count. For the distribution of child porn charge, he faces 5-20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. The child porn possession charge is punishable by up 10 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine.
