Clay Co. Man Gets 30 Years for Child Pornography

CLAY COUNTY, FL – A 45-year-old man from Green Cove Springs has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for producing and transporting child pornography.

Leonard Leland Walters Jr. was also ordered to a lifetime term of supervised release following his imprisonment, according to court documents. Walters’ conviction followed an investigation that uncovered over 619 images and 11 videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, many involving Walters himself.

The DOJ’s United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida announced that Walters was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Corrigan today. The case began when Walters communicated online with an undercover law enforcement officer, boasting about his sexual encounters with a minor and offering to abuse a fictitious teenager.

“This sentence serves as a stark reminder of the severe consequences faced by those who produce and distribute child pornography,” said Susan L. McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa. “HSI’s dedicated agents are committed to aggressively investigating these despicable crimes.”

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and the Clay County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation into Walters’ activities. Assistant United States Attorney Kelly S. Karase prosecuted the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.

For more information on Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc.