Carl Junction man pleads guilty to sexual exploitation of a child

A Carl Junction man pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to the sexual exploitation of a 14-year-old victim.

Damion Spillman, 28, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to the sexual exploitation of a child.

By pleading guilty, Spillman admitted  to enticing a 14-year-old victim to give him a pornographic video and photos of herself. Spillman received the nude images and video from Jane Doe between late November 2019 and January 2020.  Spillman admitted to threatening the victim when she reported to the authorities that Spillman was making her give him nude images.

Under federal statutes, Spillman is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of 30 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie L. Wan. It was investigated by the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force and Homeland Security Investigation.

Project Safe Childhood

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 Attorneys’ 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.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”