The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announces that Cullen Mackenzie Britton, 25, of Drake, Colorado, was sentenced to 348 months in prison and a lifetime of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to attempted production of child pornography.
According to the plea agreement, over the course of about two years, Cullen contacted at least six minors between the ages of nine and 14 via a social media site and attempted to get the minors to create and send him child pornography.
“The severity of this sentence shows how seriously we take sexual exploitation of children,” said Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado Matt Kirsch. “These abhorrent crimes will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
“This sentence represents a victory in the ongoing battle to protect our most vulnerable citizens – our children. This individual, who used social media to exploit and prey on minors, will now face the full weight of justice with a sentence that reflects the seriousness of his crimes,” said Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Denver Special Agent in Charge Ryan L. Spradlin. “HSI remains steadfast in our commitment to ensure that those who endanger our communities, especially our youth, are held accountable for their actions.”
Judge Regina M. Rodriguez presided over the sentencing. The case was investigated by HSI Denver. Assistant United States Attorney Melissa Hindman handled the prosecution.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.
Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and to identify and rescue victims.
For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the “Resources” tab on the left of the page.