An Alaska man will spend decades in prison after accidentally recording himself attempting to create child pornography in a supermarket bathroom.
Jesse Damon, 35, was sentenced to 25 years in prison followed by a life term of supervised release on Tuesday.
Prosecutors say that in May 2022, Damon hid a cell phone and battery pack in a grocery store vent in Palmer, Alaska, about 43 miles from Anchorage, to capture images of naked children using the bathroom. He intended to use the images to produce child pornography, federal investigators said.
An employee found the phone after noticing that the vent cover was loose and when they opened a video app on the phone they saw Damon, who had recorded himself while hiding the device. The employees then looked through the store’s security cameras and found footage of Damon trying to recover the phone after placing it in the vent.
Staff contacted law enforcement officials and when they confronted him he admitted to concealing the phone and battery pack. Officers found images of adults and two minor victims using the bathroom on the phone Damon placed in the vent. In addition, investigators located 29 videos and 44 still images of child pornography on the device.
Evidence showed Damon used the phone to receive and distribute child pornography using Kik, Dropbox and Mega links. He had a prior child pornography conviction and was required to register as a sex offender at the time of his arrest.
In January, Damon entered a plea agreement with authorities on one count of attempted production of child pornography, according to federal court documents. The agreement stipulated a prison sentence of 25 to 50 years, a $250,000 fine and a minimum of five years to a lifetime of supervised release.
“Mr Damon is a repeat offender who presented an escalating danger to our community,” US Attorney S Lane Tucker for the District of Alaska said in a news release.
“I commend the vigilant supermarket employees whose swift actions played a crucial role in the successful investigation and prosecution led by the FBI and Palmer Police Department.”
Damon’s attorney told The Independent he had no comment on the case.
