U.S Attorney Mike Hurst announced on Thursday that Brett Michael Sekinger, 26, of Ocean Springs, has been sentenced to serve eight years in federal prison after being found guilty of possessing child pornography.
The conviction comes as the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force, which began back in January 2015. According to a media release, Sekinger was identified through his online activity which was linked to an online child porn “bulletin board”. The board was populated by users sending and receiving pornography on a website that could only be accessed by users within the subject network who had the appropriate software and equipment.
The task force was able to identify an internet protocol address and a username in Ocean Springs. Using the information gathered during their investigation, a federal search warrant was executed in February 2016 to arrest Sekinger. Following his arrest, it was determined that he knowingly possessed the necessary equipment to access the website. According to officials, the evidence shows Sekinger had still photos and videos of minors; including some under the age of 12.
Ten years of supervised release will follow Sekinger’s prison sentence, and he was also ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution to a victim.
