BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — A federal jury has found a 40-year-old man from Bloomington guilty of receiving and possessing child sex abuse material.
According to court documents and the U.S. Department of Justice, in January 2018, law enforcement officers first became aware of James Lee Willis' online activity when an IP address that later traced to his house showed downloads of videos and images that depicted minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
Some files depicted very graphic material of minors under 10 years old being sexually abused and raped by adult men, according to the DOJ.
In February 2018, law enforcement officers searched Willis' Bloomington home and found electronic devices containing evidence that Willis had searched for and downloaded child sex abuse material online.
Digital forensic evidence from the devices again demonstrated Willis' interest in videos and images of minors as young as 10 years old being sexually abused, including evidence of when Willis downloaded the material and evidence of when he watched it on the devices, according to the DOJ.
The DOJ said evidence showed on dates in January and February 2018, Willis downloaded and watched dozens of files from the internet that contained videos and images of child sexual exploitation.
Willis faces a prison sentence of a minimum of five years and up to 20 years for each of the five charges related to his downloading activity. He faces up to 20 years for the charge relating to his possession of the material.
Willis also faces between five years and life of supervision following his release from prison. He must register as a sex offender wherever he lives, works or goes to school.