U.S. District Court Judge Liles C. Burke last week sentenced two North Alabama residents to more than 70 years in prison combined on unrelated child exploitation charges.

Jeremy Michael Lee Powell, 25, of Athens, was sentenced to 50 years in prison, followed by lifetime of supervised release, after pleading guilty in April to two counts of production of child pornography. 

Becky Lynn Burroughs, 46, of Decatur, was sentenced to 21 years, six months in prison, followed by lifetime of supervised release. Burroughs pleaded guilty in April to distribution of child pornography and possession of child pornography .

According to court documents, Powell befriended a mother of two children, a seven-year-old and eight-year old. He offered to care for the children while she worked, and then engaged in sexual acts with them, telling them to keep it a secret. Powell also took advantage of the fact that the children’s father was not in contact with them, and coaxed the children into calling him “da-da,” prosecutors said. Investigators discovered 47 sexually explicit images involving the children on Powell’s cell phone.

According to Burrough’s plea agreement, Florida investigators identified an account distributing child pornography in an internet chatroom that belonged to Burroughs. Between March and September 2021, Burroughs uploaded at least 11 videos, as well as numerous images, of child pornography to the Internet.  On September 1, 2021, a search warrant was obtained for Burrough’s residence in Decatur, and agents seized Burrough’s phone.  A forensic review of the cell phone located 10 child sex abuse images and videos, investigators said.

U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona said the “sexual abuse and commercial exploitation of children is among the most serious crimes prosecuted by my office.”

“The creation and distribution of digital images of child sexual abuse perpetuates a criminal industry that is incredibly destructive to both the victims and consumers of this material,,” Escalona said. “The prosecution of these defendants is part of the ongoing commitment of my office, and that of our federal, state, and local partners, to identify and prosecute child predators.