PRESS RELEASE: Ft. Drum Civilian, Brok Chase, Pleads Guilty To Sexual Exploitation Of A Minor (Six Years Old)

Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Northern District of New York
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, March 21, 2016

Ft. Drum Civilian Pleads Guilty To Sexual Exploitation Of A Minor

Victim Was Six Years Old

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Brok Chase, 29, of Ft. Drum, New York pled guilty today to all four (4) counts of a criminal information alleging he made images of a six year old victim engaging in sexually explicit conduct, announced United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian.

The defendant, a civilian, shared a residence with a serving member of the United States Army (who was not involved in the commission of his crimes) when a search warrant was executed there on September 15, 2015. A mobile telephone possessed by the defendant contained the multiple images of the victim engaged in sexually explicit conduct with the defendant.

The defendant faces a maximum sentence of thirty years and a minimum sentence of fifteen years as to each count when he is sentenced on July 22, 2016 in Syracuse, New York. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.

This case is being investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) Albany Division, Syracuse Resident Agency, with assistance from FBI Louisville, Kentucky, Army CID (Fort Drum, New York), and the New York State Police, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa Fletcher.

Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). 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.