ALBANY, Ga. - An Alabama resident who previously lived in southwest Georgia was sentenced to serve 135 months in prison Monday for distributing child sexual abuse material online.
Bradley Love, 37, must also complete 25 years of supervised release and register as a sex offender for life.
Federal court sentencing
What we know:
Chief U.S. District Judge Leslie Abrams Gardner handed down the 135-month prison sentence Monday following Love's guilty plea to one count of distribution of child pornography on Feb. 26. Because there is no parole in the federal system, Love will serve the full length of his confinement before starting 25 years of supervised release. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Monica Daniels and Julius Jefferson prosecuted the case for the government.
Unanswered case details
What we don't know:
Officials have not yet confirmed which specific correctional facility Love will be sent to serve his sentence. It also remains unclear exactly how long Love had been sharing illicit materials online before federal authorities intercepted his messages.
Online chat investigation
The backstory:
The case began on Dec. 7, 2023, when an undercover Homeland Security Investigations agent entered a "teen chat" room on chat-avenue.com and posted a message posing as a father of two young daughters.
Love, using the screen name "Whiteranger," privately messaged the agent to ask explicit questions about the girls. He then moved the chat to the messaging platforms Kik and Session, where he sent a photo of male genitals, requested explicit pictures of the daughters, and shared three files depicting young girls engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
Electronic device seizures
By the numbers:
135: The number of months Love was sentenced to serve in federal prison.
139: The number of child sexual abuse images found on Love's first seized cellphone.
2: The number of child sexual abuse images discovered on his second cellphone.
37: Love's age at the time of his sentencing.
Homeland security search
Local perspective:
On Sept. 5, 2024, federal agents joined the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Early County Sheriff's Office to execute a search warrant at Love's home in Blakely, Georgia.
Love confessed to investigators that he targeted toddler-age children and confirmed that he used the online platforms to send and receive the material. The case was brought under Project Safe Childhood, a Department of Justice initiative launched in May 2006 to combat child exploitation.
Officials target predators
What they're saying:
"Our office will tirelessly pursue all those who exploit children online and hold them accountable for their crimes at the federal level," said U.S. Attorney William R "Will" Keyes. "Working alongside law enforcement, we will use every resource available to safeguard children and bring offenders to justice."
Steven N. Schrank, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Georgia and Alabama, added: "Let this serve as a warning: Anyone who distributes child sexual abuse material will be found and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. HSI’s undercover operations are designed to expose predators who target children online. We will not tolerate these crimes, and we will use every tool at our disposal to protect children and ensure offenders are removed from our communities."
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from a news release provided by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Georgia, which detailed the court proceedings and sentencing of Bradley Love. It includes official statements from U.S. Attorney William R "Will" Keyes and HSI Special Agent in Charge Steven N. Schrank, alongside details from federal court documents regarding the joint investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and the Early County Sheriff's Office.