On December 10, 2019, former fugitive Stanley Simms was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Joan A. Lenard to 96 months in prison, to be followed by 40 years of supervised release, for possessing child pornography.
Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI’s Miami Field Office made the announcement.
In September of 2012, Simms was observed on a peer-2-peer file sharing program sharing child pornography. A number of videos and images of child pornography were downloaded by an undercover FBI agent. On June 2, 2013, a search warrant was executed on Simms residence in Sunrise, Florida. During the execution of the search warrant Simms asked to leave his residence. He was allowed to leave and did not return. A forensic analysis of the electronic devices seized from Simms’ home, pursuant to the search warrant, revealed images and videos of children engaged in sexual activity. Law enforcement made every attempt to locate Simms, however he could not be found.
On June 7, 2013, a warrant was issued for Simms’ arrest. On September 29, 2016, Simms, who had not yet been located, was indicted for possession of child pornography (Case No.16cr60285). In November of 2016, U.S. District Judge Lenard entered an Order transferring Stanley Simms to fugitive status. Law enforcement continued their search for the defendant. Simms was ultimately located in Jamaica. On May 10, 2019, Simms arrived at Miami International Airport and was arrested.
Simms pled guilty to possessing child pornography on September 11, 2019. A restitution hearing has been scheduled for February 24, 2020 at 11:30 a.m., before Judge Lenard.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigatory efforts of the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force in this matter. This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine Koontz.
