James Falzone, Child Sexual Abuse, Florida 2024

Tampa, Florida – In a recent crackdown on child predators, a Wimauma man has been sentenced to eight years and one month in federal prison for his involvement in the receipt of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

James Falzone, a 56-year-old resident of Wimauma, Florida, was handed down the sentence by U.S. District Judge Virginia Covington. The court also ordered Falzone to pay $30,000 in restitution to victims of the offenses and to register as a sex offender.

The case against Falzone began on October 31, 2022, when he attempted to enter the United States via the seaport in Port Canaveral, Florida, after arriving from an international cruise. Law enforcement conducted a border search of his cellphone and found over 1,500 images of CSAM. Additionally, within Falzone’s cellphone was a chat with another individual from whom he received CSAM.

“Another child predator behind bars,” said ICE HSI Tampa Assistant Special Agent in Charge Micah McCombs. “Thanks to the unique border search authorities of our special agents, this criminal was caught red-handed.”

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ross Roberts and Abigail K. King. It was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Falzone pled guilty plea on December 4, 2024. The case against him serves as a reminder of the importance of vigilance in protecting our children from predators.

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