[StBernard] GUILTY PLEA IN BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA, TO CHARGES OF RECEIVING AND POSSESSING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY

[Westley Annis]

GUILTY PLEA IN BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA, TO CHARGES OF RECEIVING AND
POSSESSING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY 
BATON ROUGE, LA - MICHAEL S. DIVINCENTI, age 27, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana,
pled guilty yesterday before Chief U.S. District Court Judge Ralph E. Tyson
to a bill of information charging him with possessing child pornography, in
violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252(a)(4)(B); receiving
child pornography, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section
2252(a)(2); and forfeiture, pursuant to Title 18, United States Code,
Section 2253, United States Attorney David R. Dugas announced. DIVINCENTI
faces a total maximum sentence of not less than five (5) years and not more
than thirty (30) years imprisonment and a $500,000 fine.

This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February
2006, U.S. Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales created Project Safe
Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online
exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys Offices, Project
Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate,
apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet,
as well as identify and rescue victims. 

This investigation has involved the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle
District of Louisiana, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Baton
Rouge Police Department. This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant United
States Attorney Corey R. Amundson, who serves as the Project Safe Childhood
Coordinator for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of
Louisiana. Sentencing has not yet been set.