KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Holt, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for sharing child pornography over the Internet.
Jeffrey T. Pachl, 54, of Holt, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to eight years in federal prison without parole.
On July 25, 2016, Pachl pleaded guilty to attempting to distribute child pornography over the Internet. He admitted that he used peer-to-peer file-sharing software to share images of child pornography over the Internet. An FBI agent identified Pachl’s computer as making child pornography available for other users to download and FBI agents executed a search warrant at his residence on April 18, 2014. Agents seized two desktop computers, an external hard drive and seven USB drives from the residence.
Agents contacted Pachl at his workplace and interviewed him. Pachl admitted that he used a desktop computer in the basement office of his home to search for and download child pornography, and that he had been using the file-sharing program for approximately 10 years.
Investigators found more than 27,000 images and more than 300 videos of child pornography on the USB drives. Several dozen images of child pornography were located on the computers and external drive, including images of bondage and torture, many of prepubescent victims. Evidence was located related to extensive Internet browsing of files indicating access to hundreds of files of possible child pornography.
Pachl also used an alias to communicate with females via Facebook. Investigators discovered numerous messages with females, most of whom appeared to be under the age of 18. Pachl discussed sexual photos with most of the females and asked for additional photographs from many of them. Agents also discovered Pachl’s e-mail account, which he used to receive photographs and spoke explicitly via e-mail with a person who claimed she was 14 years old.
Under the terms of his plea agreement, Pachl must pay restitution to six victims who have petitioned for restitution from every person who received or possessed pictures of their childhood sexual abuse. Pachl must pay $5,000 in restitution to each victim, or $3,000 to each victim if he can pay within 30 days.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine A. Connelly. It was investigated by the FBI.
Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."