January 24, 2007

Retired 36-year minister pleads guilty to possessing child pornography
ICE agents seized more than 3,700 images of child pornography from his home

CLEVELAND - A retired Amherst minister of 36 years pleaded guilty here today to charges of receiving and possessing child pornography. Today's guilty plea resulted from an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) special agents.

Jerry Paull, 64, was indicted by a federal grand jury in May 2005 and was arrested as part of ICE's Operation Predator, a nationwide initiative to apprehend those committing sexual crimes against children.

ICE began the investigation after Paull's credit card information was discovered on subscriptions to illegal child pornography websites. The ICE investigation revealed that Paull had a pattern and history of subscribing to such websites. ICE special agents executed a search warrant of Paull's residence in June 2004 and seized boxes of CDs, floppy disks, and videotapes of child pornography. Printed images and documents relating to child pornography websites were discovered hidden in a garbage can in the garage. A computer forensic analysis revealed more than 3,700 images of prepubescent children involved in bondage and sexually explicit activity.

“This case reveals the disturbing truth that some adults will go to great lengths to sexually exploit children,” said Brian M. Moskowitz, special agent-in-charge of the ICE Office of Investigations covering Michigan and Ohio. “While we cannot restore innocence to those who were abused and exploited, we can make sure that justice is served. ICE will ensure that justice is served on behalf of the victims.”

This case is part of Operation Predator, ICE's comprehensive initiative to safeguard children from foreign national pedophiles, international sex tourists, Internet child pornographers, and human traffickers. Since Operation Predator was launched in July 2003, ICE agents have arrested more than 9,200 individuals nationwide, including 109 in Ohio.

ICE encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2ICE. Investigators staff this hotline around the clock. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, at 1-800-843-5678 or http://www.cybertipline.com.

Paull is scheduled to be sentenced April 3. The sentencing guidelines for Paull in this case range from 97 to 121 months in prison.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan, Northern District of Ohio, prosecuted the case.

-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

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