- Robert Lee Johnson III pleaded guilty to two counts of producing child pornography involving a minor he met in 2020 in Gainesville.
- Johnson faces 15 to 30 years in federal prison, must register as a sex offender, and sentencing is set for Sept. 1 in Gainesville court.
A Gainesville man has pleaded guilty in federal court to two counts of production of child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida.
According to a Northern District of Florida U.S. Attorney’s Office press release sent on Friday, Robert Lee Johnson III, 39, entered a guilty plea in U.S. District Court.
“This defendant preyed upon and sexually exploited a minor child, but thanks to the excellent investigative work by our state and federal law enforcement partners and the aggressive prosecution by my office, he is on his way to federal prison,” U.S. Attorney John Heekin said in the release. “Keeping disgusting predators, like this defendant, locked away is key to keeping our kids safe.”
According to court documents, Johnson met the victim in 2020, when the victim was 14 years old and Johnson was 33. Prosecutors said Johnson recorded sexually explicit acts involving the minor and later threatened to post the videos online.
Authorities recovered the videos during the execution of a search warrant on Johnson’s cellphone, according to court records.
Johnson faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison and a maximum of 30 years on each count. He will also be required to register as a sex offender.
Sentencing is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. on Sept. 1 before Chief U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor at the United States Courthouse in Gainesville.
The case was investigated jointly by the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christie Utt is prosecuting the case.
The prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the U.S. Department of Justice in 2006 to combat the sexual exploitation and abuse of children. The initiative brings together federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to identify victims, apprehend offenders and prosecute individuals who exploit children, particularly through the internet.
Keep finding them and locking them up. Nobody is lower than a child abuser, and the vilest type of child abuse is sexual exploitation.