Thomas L. Bowen Ballard, 38, of Egg Harbor Township, N.J., was sentenced to seven years in state prison, including 3 ½ years of parole ineligibility, by Superior Court Judge Michael J. Blee in Atlantic County. He will be required to register as a sex offender under Megan’s Law and will be subject to parole supervision for life under the law. Ballard pleaded guilty on Sept. 24 to distribution of child pornography under New Jersey’s tough new child pornography statute. In pleading guilty, he admitted that he sent more than 1,000 files of child pornography via email to other users. Deputy Attorney General Anand Shah prosecuted Ballard and handled the sentencing for the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau.

The investigation into Ballard began when federal agents with ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) were monitoring the foreign-based website and became aware of a user, later identified as Ballard, who bragged that he had impregnated an 8-year-old girl and was soliciting others who were signed up as members of the site to trade child pornography. HSI referred the case to the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau for further joint investigation and prosecution.

Special agents of HSI and detectives of the Division of Criminal Justice executed a search warrant at Ballard’s home on Sept. 23, 2014 and arrested him. When the warrant was executed, Ballard locked himself in a bathroom and dropped an Android cell phone into the toilet. Investigators seized that phone along with an Apple iPhone and a laptop computer. The investigation revealed that Ballard frequently used forums on the foreign-based website to author explicit posts about the sexual assault and torture of children. He also arranged to trade child pornography with other members of the site. The investigation revealed that Ballard sent nearly 12,000 videos and images of child pornography to other users from August 2012 through August 2014, including videos of prepubescent girls being bound and tortured.

“This disturbing case illustrates the mass market for child pornography that exists in the shadows of the Internet, where deviants like Ballard trade these loathsome images and thereby motivate child predators to torture and exploit additional innocent children,” said Acting Attorney General Hoffman. “We’ll continue to use our tough new law to secure lengthy prison sentences with mandatory parole ineligibility for offenders who amass and distribute large quantities of child pornography.”

“Offenders like Ballard know where to go online to meet others who share their desire to see children sexually assaulted and tortured,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “Our message to such offenders is that law enforcement also knows these hidden places on the Internet and we will meet you there with the full force of the law.”

“We will never tire in our pursuit to ensure our families and communities are secure and safe from child predators,” said Special Agent in Charge Terence S. Opiola of ICE Homeland Security Investigations in Newark.

Acting Attorney General Hoffman commended the special agents of the ICE Homeland Security Investigations Cherry Hill Office and the detectives of the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau who conducted the investigation. He also thanked the New Jersey State Police Digital Technology Investigations Unit, the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office and the Egg Harbor Township Police for their valuable assistance. Deputy Attorney General Shah, retired Sgt. Thomas Turley and retired Deputy Attorney General Kenneth Sharpe, former Deputy Chief of the Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau, conducted the investigation for the Division of Criminal Justice.

The tough new law signed by Governor Christie in 2013 calls for a presumptive sentence of three to five years in state prison for possessing 100 or more computer files of child pornography. Under the new law, distribution of 25 or more files of child pornography carries a sentence of five to 10 years in state prison, including a mandatory minimum period of five years of parole ineligibility.

Acting Attorney General Hoffman and Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice urged anyone with information about the distribution of child pornography on the Internet – or about suspected improper contact by unknown persons communicating with children via the Internet or possible exploitation or sexual abuse of children – to please contact the New Jersey Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Tipline at 888-648-6007.

####