Acting United States Attorney Ellison C. Travis announced that Thomas Mills V, 58, from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography. The plea was entered before U.S. District Judge John W. deGravelles after a jury trial had begun.
According to the plea admissions, on October 22, 2018, officers from the Zachary Police Department responded to a suspicious vehicle report on Highway 19. An anonymous tip led them to Mills parked in an alley behind a party store. Mills initially claimed he was cleaning his car and using the internet for emails. Officers found discrepancies in his statements regarding his residence and registration as a sex offender.
Mills’ nervous behavior and previous federal felony conviction for possession of child pornography in 2012 raised suspicions. A criminal history check confirmed his status as a registered sex offender with probation conditions prohibiting computer possession.
Officers seized approximately nineteen electronic devices from Mills’ vehicle at the request of his probation officer. Forensic analysis revealed around 1,325 pictures and six videos depicting child exploitation images.
In 2013, Mills received a sentence of 62 months imprisonment for his prior conviction related to child pornography.
The investigation was conducted by the Zachary Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Eli J. Abad and Ben Wallace.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse nationwide.
