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Date: 02-01-2019

Case Style:

United States of America v. Austin Jones

Case Number: 1:17-cr-00417

Judge: John Z. Lee

Court: United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (Cook County)

Plaintiff's Attorney: Katherine Neff Welsh

Defendant's Attorney: Terrence Patrick Lafevour and Donna A. Rotunno

Description:




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Chicago, IL - Suburban Musician Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charge for Enticing Underage Girls to Produce Sexually Explicit Videos

A west suburban musician pleaded guilty to a federal child pornography charge and admitted enticing several underage girls, many as young as 14 years old, to produce sexually explicit videos of themselves.

AUSTIN JONES, 26, of Bloomingdale, pleaded guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum sentence of 20 years. U.S. District Judge John Z. Lee conditionally accepted the guilty plea.

The guilty plea was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and James M. Gibbons, Special Agent-in-Charge of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations in Chicago. The Illinois Attorney General’s Office’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Bloomingdale Police Department provided assistance in the investigation. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Neff Welsh.

Jones is a musician with a significant following on social media, including Facebook and YouTube. His online music videos have been viewed millions of times.

Jones admitted in a plea agreement that in 2016 and 2017 he chatted with six underage girls on Facebook and enticed them to produce pornographic videos of themselves and send them to him. Jones told some of his victims to send him the videos as a way to “prove” that they were his biggest fans, the plea agreement states. He also told some of his victims that the videos were part of a modeling opportunity, and that he could assist them in gaining followers on the social media site Instagram, the plea agreement states.

In addition to the six victims whom he enticed to send videos, Jones further admitted in the plea agreement that he used Facebook on approximately 30 other occasions to attempt to persuade minor girls to send him sexually explicit videos and photographs.

If you believe you are a victim of sexual exploitation, you are encouraged to call the ICE Tip Line at 1-866-DHS2-ICE (1-866-347-2423) or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678. The hotlines are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.


Charge:


ACTIVITIES RE MATERIAL CONSTITUTING/CONTAINING CHILD PORNO
(1)

Outcome: 02/01/2019 78 ORDER as to Austin Jones : Arraignment and plea hearing held. Defendant was informed of his rights. Defendant waives right to proceed by indictment and formal reading of the information. Defendant withdrew his plea of not guilty to the single count of the information and entered a plea of guilty as to the single count, which was conditionally accepted by the Court. The cause is referred to the probation office for the preparation of a pre-sentence investigation report. Defendant's sentencing memorandum and objections to the report are to be filed by 4/18/19, and the government's response by 4/25/19. Sentencing is set for 5/3/19 at 1:30 p.m. In the event that the government is seeking an order of forfeiture in this matter, a motion for entry of a preliminary order of forfeiture should be filed by 4/4/19. Any objections or responses to the motion should be filed by 4/18/19. The Probation Office is directed to provide the parties with a copy of its sentencing recommendation.Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3664(d)(1), if restitution is being sought in this case, 60 days prior to the sentencing date, the Government shall provide the Probation Office and the courtroom deputy an electronic standardized spreadsheet (available on the Courts website) with a list of victims and their full current contact information. This list shall include any amounts subject to restitution. If the Government is not able to provide the full victim list 60 days prior to sentencing, they shall file a motion to request an extension of time to compile the information, to the extent permitted by 18 U.S.C. § 3664(d)(5).Time is excluded by agreement from 2/1/19 through 5/3/19 in the interest of justice pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 3161(h)(7)(A) and (B)(iv). Signed by the Honorable John Z. Lee on 2/1/19. Mailed notice (tt, ) (Entered: 02/04/2019)
02/01/2019 79 PLEA Agreement as to Austin Jones. (tt, ) (Entered: 02/04/2019)
02/01/2019 80 WAVIER OF INDICTMENT by Austin Jones. (tt, ) (Entered: 02/04/2019)

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