Date: 07-28-2016

Case Style: United States of America v. Shawn Shannon

Case Number: 2:15-cr-20014-CSB-EIL

Judge: Colin S. Bruce

Court: United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois

Plaintiff's Attorney: Maureen C Cain

Defendant's Attorney: Sami Z Azhari and Kevin P. Bolger

Description: WASHINGTON – Indiana Gospel Singer Found Guilty of Sexual Exploitation of a Minor and Distribution of Child Pornography

A jury has convicted a Muncie, Indiana, man of 19 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of distribution of child pornography, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Jim Lewis of the Central District of Illinois.

Shawn Shannon, 44, a traveling gospel singer, was convicted yesterday after a three-day trial.

The government presented evidence that Shannon lured a 13-year-old boy to a hotel in Decatur, Illinois, and directed him to pose for a series of sexually explicit photos. Shannon also engaged in sexual contact with another minor boy and took similar photos, according to trial evidence.

Shannon was arrested on April 15, 2015, and was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial. Sentencing has been scheduled for Jan. 9, 2017, before U.S. District Judge Colin S. Bruce of the Central District of Illinois.

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