Media release -- RAYMOND WATTS a/k/a 'Robin St. Taw,' 55, of Kingston pleaded guilty today to distributing and possessing child pornography.
United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said, "The possession and distribution of child pornography is a disturbing crime, but the potential harms to the community are increased exponentially when the defendant is entrusted with children at a local school. The arrest and conviction of this defendant has made Woodstock a safer place."
"ICE HSI will aggressively use its broad investigative authorities to identify and arrest individuals who seek to sexually exploit any child," said Brock Nicholson, Special Agent in Charge of ICE-HSI in Atlanta. "HSI is fully committed to insuring that those who victimize children - including those who hold positions of public trust as in this case - are brought to justice." Nicholson oversees HSI for the states of Georgia, North and South Carolina.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and the information contained in public record documents: During the course of an ongoing child pornography investigation, law enforcement officers discovered that WATTS appeared to be a possessor of sexually explicit images of children, in particular, minor boys. At that time, WATTS was working as a middle school teacher in Woodstock, Georgia. In early 2011, an undercover law enforcement agent made contact with WATTS, which led to in- person meetings between WATTS and the undercover agent. During one of their meetings, WATTS distributed numerous images of child pornography to the agent. WATTS was later found to have hundreds of sexually explicit images of children on his home computer.
WATTS could receive a maximum sentence of incarceration of 30 years, a total fine of $250,000, and supervised release for life. In determining his actual sentence, the Court will consider the United States Sentencing Guidelines, which are not binding but provide appropriate sentencing ranges for most offenders.
WATTS is scheduled to be sentenced before United States District Court Judge Robert L. Vining on November 3, 2011, at 10:00 a.m.
This case is being prosecuted as a priority of the Justice Department's Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, the Attorney General launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney's Offices around the country, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This case was investigated by the Special Agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI)
Assistant United States Attorney Jill E. Steinberg is prosecuting the case.
