A prior sex offender in Forsyth, Missouri, was sentenced in federal court for receiving and distributing child pornography.
Timothy Wayne Carnelison Jr., 35, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to 20 in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Carnelison to spend the rest of his life on supervised release following incarceration. Carnelison will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison and will be subject to federal and state sex offender registration requirements, which may apply throughout his life.
Carnelison, who was sentenced as a prior sex offender, has two prior convictions for statutory sodomy in the first degree and a prior conviction for child molestation.
On Feb. 20, 2020, Carnelison pleaded guilty to receiving and distributing child pornography.
The investigation began when Google initiated a CyberTip with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children after locating files of suspected child pornography in Carnelison’s Google Photo application. Investigators confirmed the child pornography and, on Sept. 24, 2019, executed a search warrant at Carnelison’s residence. They found images of child pornography on his cell phone.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Southwest Missouri Cybercrime Task Force.
