PROJECT SAFE CHILDHOOD

MASSACHUSETTS MAN CHARGED WITH CHILD EXPLOITATION OFFENSE

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE: Frank Emery, 23, of Massachusetts was arraigned in United States District Court today on an indictment alleging that Emery traveled in interstate commerce with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity with a minor child. Specifically, the indictment alleges that Emery drove from Massachusetts to Goffstown with the intent to engage in sex with a minor child.

Trial in this matter is scheduled for July 10, 2007. If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum prison sentence of 30 years to be followed by a period of supervised release of up to life.

This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, 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. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

This prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Helen White Fitzgibbon with assistance from the Goffstown Police Department and the FBI.

An indictment is the way a formal charge is brought against a defendant. All defendants are presumed innocent of any charge brought in an indictment until guilt is proven beyond a reasonable doubt.