Press Release
United States Attorney James R. Dedrick
Eastern District of Tennessee
CONTACT: SHARRY DEDMAN-BEARD
PHONE: 865-545-4167
FAX: 865-545-4176
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
KINGSPORT MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO RECEIPT
OF CHILD PORNOGRAPHY CHARGES
[KINGSPORT, TENNESSEE]— Craig L. Bevil, age 46, of Kingsport, Tennessee, pled guilty on Monday, August 14, 2006, to count one of an indictment charging Bevil with receipt of child pornography. The guilty plea was accepted by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, United States District Judge, Greeneville, Tennessee.
Sentencing is set for Bevil on October 30, 2006. Bevil has been detained since his arrest on the indictment on May 9, 2006, and will remain in custoday without bond. Based on his criminal history, the maximum penalty under count one is fifteen to forty years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, up to a life term of supervised release and a $100 special assessment. There is no parole in the federal system.
The guilty plea was supported by the factual basis from the United States Attorney's Office as follows:
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received several cyber tip reports about suspected child pornography images uploaded to a Yahoo photos webpage. An administrative subpoena determined the owner of the webpage was Craig L. Bevil, age 46, of Kingsport, Tennessee.
On April 13, 2006, a federal search warrant was executed at Bevil’s residence. Bevil admitted to belonging to approximately ten Yahoo groups through which he received child pornography. He also admitted to trading on the internet in order to receive additional images of child pornography.
A forensic examination of Bevil’s NEC computer revealed 107 images of child pornography. The examiner determined there were images of boys under the age of twelve and images depicting violence.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Knoxville Police Department's Internet Crimes Against Children Unit as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood.
For further information contact United States Attorney Russ Dedrick or Public Information Officer Sharry Dedman-Beard, at (865)545-4167, or Assistant U.S. Attorney Guy Blackwell at (423)639-6759.