New Mexico - Adam Goodsell Pleads Guilty to Federal Distribution of Child Pornography Offense

ALBUQUERQUE—This morning in federal court, Adam Goodsell, 29, of Albuquerque, entered a guilty plea to distribution of a visual depiction of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct under a plea agreement with the United States Attorney’s Office. Under the terms of the plea agreement, Goodsell will be sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release at sentencing. Goodsell also will be required to register as a sex offender after he completes his prison sentence. Goodsell has been in federal custody since his arrest on December 17, 2010, and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be set.

Goodsell entered his guilty plea to count two of a three-count indictment charging him with (1) advertising child pornography, (2) distribution of child pornography, and (3) possession of child pornography. Under the plea agreement, counts one and three will be dismissed after Goodsell is sentenced.

United States Attorney Kenneth J. Gonzales said that Goodsell was arrested as a result of an investigation by the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office (NMAGO), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Winnipeg Canadian Police. The investigation was initiated after a detective of the Winnipeg Canadian Police, who was acting in an undercover capacity, obtained access to Goodsell’s account on a file-sharing program, and found 21 folders with 82,171 files of child pornography that were available for distribution to others. Goodsell distributed one of those child pornography images to the undercover detective on August 12, 2010.

In his plea agreement, Goodsell acknowledged that, on August 20, 2010, the NMAGO and FBI executed a search warrant at his residence and seized his computers and computer-related media. Goodsell admitted that, while the search warrant was being executed, he participated in a recorded interview during which he admitted having more than 1,000 child pornography files “from babies on up” on his computers. Goodsell also admitted distributing child pornography.

According to Goodsell’s plea agreement, a forensic examination of Goodsell’s computers and computer-related media uncovered thousands of image files and video files of child pornography. Goodsell acknowledged that the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children determined that the child pornography images found on his computers and computer-related media included 486 images of 34 children who have been identified as child pornography victims and have been rescued, and 22 videos of 15 children who have been identified as child pornography victims and have been rescued.

The case was investigated by the NMAGO, the FBI, and the Winnipeg Canadian Police with assistance from the District Attorney’s Office for the Second Judicial District. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Charlyn E. Rees.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case also was brought as part of the New Mexico Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force’s (ICAC Task Force) mission to locate, track, and capture Internet child sexual predators and Internet child pornographers in New Mexico. There are 61 federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies associated with the ICAC Task Force, which is funded by a grant administered by the NMAGO. Anyone with information relating to suspected child predators and suspected child abuse is encouraged to contact federal or local law enforcement.

http://www.justice.gov/usao/nm/pr/2011/2011-10-06_goodsell_plea_agreement_pr.pdf