A Moscow man has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for distribution of child sexual abuse material.
According to court records, in early 2024, law enforcement received Cybertips from an email provider indicating that a man, identified as 39-year-old Joshua Downer, who was using their email service, was distributing child sexual abuse material from multiple related email addresses.
Law enforcement traced the email addresses to a Moscow address where Downer, a registered sex offender on federal supervision for a prior conviction related to child sexual abuse material, lived. In February 2024, law enforcement searched Downer’s home and found a tablet in Downer’s bedroom. Downer was prohibited from possessing the tablet while on federal supervision. A forensic analysis of the tablet revealed numerous images and videos of child sexual abuse material, as well as evidence indicating that Downer was using the tablet to distribute child sexual abuse material to others.
Chief U.S. District Judge David Nye ordered Downer to serve a lifetime of supervised release following his prison sentence and to pay $12,000 in restitution to four victims in the images he possessed. Downer will be required to continue to register as a sex offender as a result of the conviction.
