Defendant Pleads Guilty to Receiving Child Pornography

Jacksonville, Florida – In a disturbing case, Charles Eugene Mears (56, Orange Park) has pleaded guilty to receiving child pornography over the Internet.

According to court documents, a Florida Department of Law Enforcement agent in Jacksonville began an undercover investigation to identify individuals in northeast Florida who had access to and/or were trading images and videos of child pornography over the Internet.

The agent identified a computer that was hosting images of child pornography using a peer-to-peer file sharing program, and was able to download several of the files. Further investigation traced the host computer to Mears’s residence.

Agents subsequently executed a federal search warrant at Mears’s residence and seized several computers and other electronic media. Forensic analyses of Mears’s laptop revealed that it contained at least 211 videos depicting child pornography, including at least one video depicting the sexual abuse of a toddler.

This case was investigated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Clay County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

Mears faces a mandatory minimum penalty of five years, up to 20 years, in federal prison and a potential life term of supervision. A sentencing hearing has not yet been set.

MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS

Sex Crimes

Tariq Arrhamann Majid, Sexual Exploitation of Children, California 2023

Oct 17, 2022

Sex Crimes

Michael T. Sutherin, Coercing Minor Girls, Ohio 2024

Feb 20, 2020

Sex Crimes

Joshua Keith Davis, Child Sexual Abuse, Florida 2025

Aug 13, 2025

Sex Crimes

Urbano Vazquez, Misdemeanor Sexual Abuse, District of Columbia 2024

Nov 30, 2021