Florida man pleads guilty to transporting child pornography
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Florida man who pleaded guilty Wednesday to transporting child pornography faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years, up to 20 years, in federal prison. This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, with assistance from the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office.
According to the plea agreement, in April 2013, Nicholas Mitko Clark, 22, of Yulee, used an instant messaging service to chat with an individual in Canada, with whom he exchanged child pornography. During the chat, Clark requested that the individual send him child pornography and advised that he liked children between the ages of and 8 and 13. After receiving an image depicting a young child, Clark responded that he already had that file and requested another one. Clark and the individual proceeded to exchange additional files of child pornography. Through their investigation, law enforcement agents obtained Clark’s cellphone and recovered several additional images of child pornography. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
“This is a criminal who preyed on the innocence of our children,” said Susan L. McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa. “HSI will continue to engage with our law enforcement partners to combat the sexual abuse and exploitation of children.”
This investigation was conducted under HSI's Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 12,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2014, more than 2,000 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative.
HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.
For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI's Operation Predator smartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page.
HSI is a founding member and current chair of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies and private industry sector partners working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.
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