Source: Office of United States Attorneys
RALEIGH, N.C. – A former marine was sentenced to 144 months imprisonment followed by 5 years of supervised release, and $273,000 in restitution to 29 victims, for receipt of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
According to court documents and other information presented in court, Paul Anthony Reyes, 23, was investigated by the investigated by the Naval Criminal Investigative Services after Instagram reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that one of its users had uploaded contraband to its platform. The IP address used to upload the illegal content was linked to Reyes who was an active duty Marine stationed at U.S. Marine Corps Air Station in Cherry Point.
NCIS agents executed a search warrant on the Instagram account which revealed Reyes was willing to trade and distribute child pornography material to other Instagram users. Subsequently, NCIS executed a search warrant on Reyes’ person and barracks. Multiple digital devices were seized and forensically analyzed pursuant to the search warrant.
On those devices, law enforcement found thousands of images and videos of child pornography. Many of them depicted sadistic and masochistic conduct. Reyes possessed multiple images and videos depicting the rape and abuse of infants and toddlers.
Michael F. Easley, Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after the sentencing was concluded. U.S. District Judge Terrence W. Boyle presided over the sentencing. The Naval Criminal Investigative Services investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charity Wilson prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit Justice.gov/PSC.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:24-CR-1-BO.