INDIANAPOLIS — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Indiana, Southern), published as received.

INDIANAPOLIS- A federal grand jury indicted Douglas Gibson, 38, of Lebanon, Indiana, on two counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, one count of sexual exploitation of minor by a registered sex offender, one count of distribution of child sexual abuse material, and one count of possession of child sexual abuse material.

According to court documents, on August 3, 2021, the Indiana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received a cyber tip from Kik Messenger, an instant messaging app, alerting investigators to an account that had been sharing child sexual abuse images. Investigators traced the Google email address associated with the account back to Douglas Gibson. A search of Gibson’s residence uncovered numerous files containing visual depictions of children as young as seven years old, engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

Further investigation found that Gibson allegedly secretly recorded a prepubescent child by hiding video cameras in the air vent of a bathroom, loft, and bedroom of the child’s residence. Gibson then distributed images and files of the victim in various states of undress to other individuals. As alleged in the indictment, Gibson was required to register under Indiana law at the time he secretly recorded the child and distributed the files.

If convicted on all counts, Gibson faces up to 135 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine the actual sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, Randal Taylor, Chief of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, Herbert J. Stapleton, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Indianapolis Field Office, and Boone County Sheriff Tony Harris made the announcement.

This investigation is being led by the Internet Crimes Against Children Unit of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, the FBI, and the Boone County Sheriff’s Office, as part of Indiana’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force.

Indiana’s ICAC Task Force is a partnership of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies led by the Indiana State Police. The Task Force is dedicated to investigating and prosecuting crimes involving the technology-facilitated sexual exploitation of children and the trafficking of child sexual abuse material. Each year, Indiana ICAC investigators evaluate many thousands of tips, investigate hundreds of cases, and rescue dozens of children from ongoing sexual abuse.

In fiscal year 2019, the most recent year for which data is available, the Southern District of Indiana was second out of the 94 federal districts in the country for the number of child sexual exploitation cases prosecuted.

U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant United States Attorney Lawrence D. Hilton, who is prosecuting this case.

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 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc

An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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