Published April 04, 2022

Louisiana Sex Offender Charged Again with Possession of Child Sexual Abuse Material

A Louisiana man previously convicted of child pornography charges has again been charged with possession of child sexual abuse material.

Louisiana – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that Jacob Wiebelt (“Wiebelt”), age 39, of Ponchatoula, Louisiana, was charged on March 28, 2022, in a one-count bill of information for Possession of Materials Involving the Sexual Exploitation of Children in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2252(a)(4)(B) and (B)(2). If convicted, Wiebelt faces a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years and a maximum sentence of up to twenty years imprisonment, and/or a fine of up to $250,000.00, or the greater of twice the gross gain to the defendant or twice the gross loss to any person of the offense under Title 18, United States Code, Section 3571. In addition, Wiebelt faces a term of supervised release of no less than five years and up to life after his release from prison. According to documents filed in federal court, Wiebelt was previously convicted in 2011 for Receipt of Child Pornography and sentenced to five years in federal prison. Wiebelt was on supervised release when he committed this new offense.

Furthermore, according to court documents, the case against Wiebelt arose as a result of a tip to the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation (“LBI”) that a user had uploaded child sexual abuse material (“CSAM”) to the Discord messenger service. The lead specifically stated that the user uploaded sexually explicit videos of prepubescent children.

United States Attorney Evans reiterated that the bill of information is only a charge and that the defendant’s guilt must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Project Safe Childhood, led by US Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. To learn more about Project Safe Childhood, go to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The United States Attorney’s Office would also like to thank the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation and the United States Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations for their assistance with this case. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba, Chief of the Financial Crimes Unit.

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