Merrick B. Garland, Attorney General | https://www.justice.gov/
Merrick B. Garland, Attorney General | https://www.justice.gov/
U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. sentenced a man from southeast Missouri to 179 months in prison for charges related to child pornography. The individual, Justin Wade Welker, aged 40, was implicated after the FBI's Detroit office discovered conversations on the Kik messaging app about engaging in sex acts with a minor. The investigation led authorities to Welker's residence in Sedgewickville, Bollinger County, Missouri.
FBI agents confronted Welker at his workplace, where he confessed to viewing child pornography through Kik. A search of his phone revealed additional child sexual abuse material. In August, Welker pleaded guilty in U.S District Court in Cape Girardeau to one count of receipt of child pornography.
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Bollinger County Sheriff’s Office, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Hunter prosecuting. This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to address child exploitation and abuse.
Project Safe Childhood coordinates efforts across federal, state, and local levels to identify and prosecute offenders exploiting children online and aims to rescue victims. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/psc.
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