Gainesville Man Charged With Making, Distributing Child Porn

A Gainesville man has been arraigned on charges he allegedly produced, distributed and received child pornography.

Michael Cannon II, who was formally indicted by a federal grand jury on April 9, is accused of allegedly posting images of a 10-year-old girl on a foreign website where users could post and share images. At least one image was child pornography, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney Northern District of Georgia office. 

Cannon allegedly posted the photo in December and several users allegedly posted comments on Cannon's images asking to trade photos. According to the press release, Cannon, 33, gave users his email address and, when they contacted him, he emailed them photos showing him allegedly molesting two female children.

Cannon also allegedly received several emails that contained images and videos of children being abused.

“Photographing molestation and trading the images over the Internet with like-minded individuals in exchange for more child pornography is horrendous,” United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said in a press release.  “Child pornography robs children of their innocence. It also places a permanent record of the victimization of these children on the Internet. To make matters even worse, in this case the two girls were in the defendant’s care. Law enforcement officers have identified and rescued the children, and the defendant will now have to answer for participating in this cycle of victimization.”  

Cannon could face between 15 and 30 years for producing child pornography. Receiving child pornography could net Cannon between five and 20 years and possesssing those imges could bring the defendant 10 years. Each charge also carries a fine up to $250,000 and a period of supervised release from five years to life.