On Friday, a federal judge sentenced Joseph Vieson, 43, of Annapolis, Maryland, to 45 years in prison, followed by supervised release for life, for conspiracy to produce child pornography, sexually exploiting a minor to produce child pornography and assisting another to engage in sexually explicit conduct with a child, and transportation, distribution and possession of child pornography, according to a report obtained by the National Association of Chiefs of Police.
The international law enforcement effort that saved two little girls in Maryland from ongoing sexual abuse has become a source of admiration and inspiration at national seminars focused on combating child exploitation.
First, a Canadian police officer found new images of child pornography on the Internet and notified U.S. authorities that a beer can in the photographs appeared to come from the northeastern United States.
Then, a Maine police officer assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force noticed that the victim was wearing unusual eyeglasses and worked with a federal prosecutor and FBI agent in New York to contact ophthalmologists throughout the region.
Finally, Maryland FBI agents joined with local authorities and Maryland Assistant U.S. Attorneys to arrest the perpetrator and help the victims.
"Thanks to their extraordinary commitment and exceptional investigative skills, the discovery of a photograph in Canada led to an arrest here in Maryland and the rescue of two victimized children," said U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein.
According to the 12 counts of the federal indictment to which Vieson pleaded guilty, beginning in 2006 he conspired with Timothy Beers to sexually abuse two young children. Vieson and Beers sexually abused the victims, photographed and took video of the abuse and then distributed the images over the Internet.
This investigation began in May 2007, when police officers in Canada identified images documenting the sexual abuse of a then-unidentified child being distributed over the Internet. In June 2007, the images were provided to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children for distribution to law enforcement so that they could attempt to identify the victim.
Due to the presence of a can of a particular brand of beer in one image, law enforcement officers believed the child was located in one of eight states in the U.S., including Maryland, where that brand of beer is distributed. In addition, law enforcement officers observed that the victim was wearing a particular brand and model of eyeglasses, which are not widely distributed. Law enforcement agents spoke with ophthalmologists in the Maryland area who had prescribed this brand and model of glasses and were able to identify, locate and rescue the victims of this conspiracy.
"This is a great example of why Project Safe Childhood is so important and underscores the importance of agencies sharing information," said Sergeant Glenn Lang, Supervisor of the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit and Commander of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Co-defendant Timothy Malcolm Beers, age 47, of Bowie, Maryland, was sentenced on May 14, 2009, to 36 years in prison, followed by supervised release for life, for conspiracy to produce child pornography, sexually exploiting a minor to produce child pornography, and possession of child pornography and paid the victims $75,000 as was required under his plea agreement.
Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police and he's a staff writer for the New Media Alliance (thenma.org). In addition, he's the former editor for the House Conservatives Fund's weblog. Kouri also serves as political advisor for Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor Michael Moriarty.
He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations. He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country. Kouri writes for many police and security magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer and others. He's a news writer for TheConservativeVoice.Com and PHXnews.com. He's also a columnist for AmericanDaily.Com, MensNewsDaily.Com, MichNews.Com, and he's syndicated by AXcessNews.Com. He's appeared as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc.
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