From the Tribune staff reports
BIRMINGHAM – A federal judge sentenced a Shelby County man for crimes involving images of child sexual abuse, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and FBI Special Agent in Charge Carlton L. Peeples on Thursday, May 26.
According to the Department of Justice, U.S. District Judge Anna Manasco sentenced Shawn Michael Hughes, 38, of Chelsea, to 180 months in prison followed by lifetime of supervised release for advertising and possessing child pornography. Hughes was also ordered to pay $116,500 in restitution to the victims. On August 2, 2022, Hughes plead guilty to one count of advertising child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.
According to court documents, Hughes admitted to being a member of a dark web chat board dedicated to discussing and exchanging images of child sexual abuse, where he posted links to images of child sexual abuse material. He also amassed a vast collection of images of child sexual abuse on his electronic devices seized from his residence. This conviction will require Hughes to register as a sex offender in accordance with the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
“Today’s sentencing sends a resounding message to those who would use the shadows of the Dark Web to commit such heinous crimes,” U.S. Attorney Escalona said. “We will continue to relentlessly pursue justice for every child impacted by these heinous acts.”
FBI Birmingham’s Child Exploitation Human Trafficking Task Force investigated the case, along with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency and the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office. Trial Attorney Gwendelynn Bills of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney R. Leann White of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Alabama prosecuted the case.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, and to identify and rescue victims.
For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
