Jeremy McQuage Gets 13+ Years for Child Porn Crimes

Jeremy McQuage, 41, of Morven, North Carolina, is headed to federal prison for more than 13 years after being sentenced to 160 months for the distribution, receipt, and possession of child pornography. The sentence, handed down Monday, August 10, 2020, by U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney in Charlotte, marks the end of a federal investigation that uncovered hundreds of graphic images and videos tied to McQuage’s digital footprint.

According to court documents, the FBI began tracking activity on the BitTorrent peer-to-peer network in February 2019, identifying an IP address linked to the downloading of child sexual abuse material, including videos depicting infants and toddlers being sexually abused. Though the internet service was registered to a residence in Morven, agents discovered McQuage did not live there. Instead, he routinely parked in the driveway and accessed the Wi-Fi to download and share illegal content.

On March 14, 2019, the FBI executed a search warrant at the residence and quickly located McQuage. His cellular phone was seized and subjected to forensic analysis, revealing hundreds of images and videos of child sexual abuse. Authorities confirmed McQuage had not only downloaded the material but also used BitTorrent to distribute it, fueling the very market that exploits vulnerable children.

McQuage pleaded guilty on December 18, 2019, to all charges. At sentencing, Judge Whitney expressed deep concern over the volume and severity of the material, stating that McQuage’s actions perpetuated a global network of child exploitation. “The victimization of the minors in these videos and images was extraordinary,” the judge said, emphasizing that the lengthy sentence was necessary to deter others from similar crimes.

In addition to 160 months behind bars, McQuage will serve a lifetime of supervised release upon his eventual release from prison. He is required to register as a sex offender and will be under federal oversight for the rest of his life. He remains in federal custody and will be transferred to a Bureau of Prisons facility once designated.

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Charlotte Division and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Wasserman and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Spaugh. It was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a Department of Justice initiative launched in 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation. The program combines federal, state, and local efforts to identify, apprehend, and prosecute offenders while also rescuing victims of online child abuse.