TALLAHASSEE — A federal jury convicted an Iowa man of distributing child pornography to a resident in the Panama City area after a three-day trial, U.S. Attorney John P. Heekin for the Northern District of Florida announced.
Dalvert Encarnacion Francisco, 37, of Dubuque, Iowa, faces a minimum mandatory sentence of five years in federal prison and up to 20 years. “Thanks to the incredible investigative work of our state and federal law enforcement partners, this depraved individual was caught and his days of distributing child sexual abuse material are over,” Heekin said.
“It remains one of my office’s highest priorities to protect our kids from predators like this defendant who seek to sexually exploit and victimize innocent children,” Heekin said.
Court records and evidence presented at trial showed the Bay County Sheriff’s Office was investigating multiple child sexual abuse material tips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children when investigators discovered Francisco had distributed child pornography to the target of those tips in the Panama City area. The FBI assisted in the investigation, which revealed Francisco requested online payments for the child sexual abuse material he distributed.
Assistant United States Attorney Meredith L. Steer prosecuted the case, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. The program marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet and to identify and rescue victims.
Sentencing is scheduled for July 24 before United States District Judge Mark E. Walker in Tallahassee.