Pearl River Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Production of Child Pornography

Jackson, MS – A Pearl River man was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for production of child pornography.

According to court documents, Garald Benson Johnson, 43, admitted to filming himself having sexual intercourse with a minor.

Johnson was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 16, 2023. He pled guilty on August 29, 2023, to production of child pornography.

U.S. Attorney Todd Gee and Robert Eikhoff, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Jackson Office, made the announcement. 

The Choctaw Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin J. Payne and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian K. Burns prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.