Hammond man convicted of using Facebook to obtain child pornography
HAMMOND, Ind. - A Hammond man was convicted by a federal jury Tuesday for conspiring to produce child pornography by using Facebook to have multiple women send him sexually explicit photos of infants and young children.
Lorenzo Johnson, 33, used a fake Facebook account to convince three women who were struggling financially to send him photos depicting the sexual abuse of infants and young children, according to the Department of Justice.
Johnson, who was previously convicted in 2009 for aggravated sexual abuse of a minor, told FBI agents he solicited child pornography in an attempt to blackmail other Facebook users.
His co-conspirators have also been indicted for conspiring to produce child pornography.
"My office will not tolerate crimes against children, and we will continue to partner with federal, state and local agencies to investigate and prosecute individuals whose criminal conduct harms and exploits such vulnerable victims," said Acting U.S. Attorney Tina L. Nommay for the Northern District of Indiana. "I wish to thank the attorneys with the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice for their invaluable assistance in this case."
Johnson faces three counts of conspiracy to produce child pornography, one count of distribution of child pornography and one charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
He will be sentenced Dec. 17 and faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years and a maximum sentence of 180 years behind bars.