Paul R. McDowell, Jr., a 29-year-old resident of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced on Apr. 27 to 94 months in prison after pleading guilty to possession of child pornography, aggravated identity theft, and unauthorized access of a computer. The sentence was handed down by United States District Court Judge Damon R. Leichty, according to an announcement from United States Attorney Adam L. Mildred.
McDowell will also serve five years of supervised release following his prison term and has been ordered to pay $66,000 in restitution.
“The Defendant was a hacker-for-hire and would hijack the online social media accounts of several young women in exchange for money from third parties. Evidence showed that he illegally obtained and used victims’ personally identifiable information to gain access to their online accounts and to download private photographs and videos. He then exploited those victims by sharing the private photos and videos with other people online. The Defendant boldly attempted to hack into at least 37 different victims’ accounts! Thanks to the vigilant efforts of our partners at the FBI as a part of Project Safe Childhood, the law enforcement team executed a search warrant at this predator’s house and recovered his computer and cell phone. The Defendant‘s devices and computer accounts contained more than 3,000 images and 3,000 videos of child sexual abuse material. Our nation’s children are safer with him behind bars,” said US Attorney Adam Mildred.
Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Boston Division said: “Paul McDowell was a hacker for hire, who violated the privacy of dozens of unsuspecting young women, stole their personally identifiable information, and subjected them to sustained harassment, shame, and even blackmail, all so he could boost his confidence and make a few bucks. To make matters worse, the FBI found tens of thousands of images and videos of child sexual abuse material on his devices. This guy didn’t just break into computer systems; he broke young people’s lives, violated their privacy, and today’s sentence will keep him locked up for a good long time so he can’t harm anyone else.”
The case was investigated by both Boston- and Indianapolis-based offices of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) with prosecution led by Assistant United States Attorneys Hannah T Jones and Luke N. Reilander.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood—a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice aimed at protecting children from exploitation through coordination among federal prosecutors as well as state agencies.
