3 registered sex offenders indicted for possessing images of child rape and abuse
All 3 violated restrictions on possession of unapproved electronic devices imposed as part of their probation or supervised release
SEATTLE — Three men, all registered sex offenders, were indicted by a federal grand jury for possessing images of child pornography, announced U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Acting Special Agent in Charge Eben Roberts and U.S. Attorney Brian T. Moran. In each case, the defendant has served prison time for sex offenses against children and are subject to monitoring by federal probation or the Washington State Department of Corrections. All three will be arraigned on the indictments in the next few weeks.
McKenna Danilo Bernardo, 23, of Burien, Washington, was charged by criminal complaint April 30, 2020, following an investigation by HSI, the King County Sheriff’s Office and Washington State Department of Corrections. In 2019, Bernardo was sentenced in King County Superior Court to 14 months in prison and three years of probation for possession of child pornography. Under the terms of his probation, Bernardo’s use of electronic devices is limited and monitored. During a home inspection in February 2019, Bernardo was found to have unauthorized electronic devices. Forensic examination of the devices revealed that they contained child pornography.
Jason Allen Legg, 44, of Seattle, was charged by criminal complaint April 30, 2020, with possession of child pornography. Legg has prior convictions in Georgia (1998) and King County Superior Court (2005). The King County conviction resulted in a ten-year sentence for rape of a child. In November 2018, Legg’s probation officer received information that Legg had an unauthorized Facebook page. Further investigation by the probation officer and the Seattle Police Department revealed Legg had a number of unapproved electronic devices, some of which contained images of child rape and abuse.
David Craig Martin, 64, of Seattle, was charged by criminal complaint May 14, 2020, with possession of child pornography. Martin has been convicted of multiple sex offenses: Child Molestation 3rd Degree in Pierce County Superior Court (2001); Indecent Exposure in King County Superior Court (2009); Indecent Exposure in King County Superior Court (2015); and Voyeurism in Clark County Superior Court (2016). In late 2019, Google reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that an account later linked to Martin had uploaded more than 175 images of child pornography. The Seattle Police’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Department of Corrections investigated and seized unauthorized electronic devices from Martin. Forensic analysis by HSI revealed they contain images of child rape and abuse.
Bernardo is currently released on federal pretrial supervision. Legg is in the custody of the Washington State Department of Corrections. Martin is detained at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac.
Possession of child pornography is punishable by up to twenty years imprisonment, with ten-year mandatory minimum sentences for those with qualifying prior sexual offenses.
The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The cases are being investigated by HSI in coordination with the Seattle Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) and the Washington State Department of Corrections.
The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson.
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