RALEIGH, North Carolina – A Cary man has been ordered to pay $293,500 in restitution to four minor victims of child exploitation crimes, announced United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Robert J. Higdon, Jr. yesterday in federal court.
Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever III ordered Adam Geoffrey Frankel, 33, of Cary, North Carolina, to pay the restitution after he was convicted of manufacturing child pornography and other charges related to child exploitation.
Frankel was named in a twelve-count Superseding Indictment on September 8, 2017, including charges of manufacturing child pornography, receipt of child pornography, and possession of child pornography. On December 11, 2017, Frankel pled guilty pursuant to a plea agreement to manufacturing child pornography. On May 24, 2018, Frankel was sentenced to 295 months of imprisonment followed by ten years of supervised release on that charge.
Frankel is now ordered to pay $250,000 to a minor victim he used to manufacture child pornography. He is also ordered to pay the remaining $43,500 to three identified victims of child pornography produced by others, which Frankel had in his possession at the time of his arrest.
The case arose in October of 2014, when the Cary Police Department began an online investigation relating to the distribution and receipt of child pornography through file sharing programs. During the course of the investigation, Frankel was identified downloading and distributing child pornography from an IP address associated with his home. A search warrant was issued for Frankel’s home and law enforcement seized multiple computers, external hard drives, cellular phones and media storage devices.
The forensic examination of the items collected contained multiple videos created by Frankel, where he communicated with underage females and solicited them to perform sexual acts on video. The forensic examination also uncovered the defendant’s collection of child pornography of at least 136,350 images.
The case was part of the Project Safe Childhood initiative, a national program aimed at ensuring that criminals exploiting children are effectively prosecuted by making full use of all available law enforcement resources at every level. Frankel is also ordered to forfeit his residence located on Belrose Drive in Cary along with several pieces of computer equipment, all of which were used to commit the charged offense.
The Cary Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations conducted the criminal investigation of this case. Assistant United States Attorney Melissa Belle Kessler handled the prosecution of this case for the United States.
This is a grim reminder of the devastating impact of child exploitation crimes. The victims of these crimes deserve justice, and we will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that those who perpetrate these crimes are held accountable.
Related Federal Cases
- Clarence Brown Jr., Child Porn Relapse, North Carolina, 2023 · Connecticut
- Jordan Lee Adams, Child Pornography Production, North Carolina · Virginia
- Anthony Dale Helton, Child Sex Abuse, North Carolina 2023 · South Carolina
- Roland Vance Watson, Child Pornography, North Carolina 2024 · North Carolina
- Franklin Wade Meares, Child Pornography, North Carolina 2012 · Arkansas
Key Facts
- State: North Carolina
- Category: Sex Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
Sex CrimesSex CrimesSex CrimesSex Crimes