Tennessee man sentenced in child pornography case involving 16-year-old

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (WVLT/WMC) - A Tennessee man was sentenced to 23 years in federal prison on child pornography charges, according to Arkansas officials.

55-year-olf Craig Gillium of Dover, Tennessee originally pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography in Aug. 2019.

The case started in January 2018 when the parents of a 16-year-old reported their daughter had disappeared from their Arkansas home. Officials discovered sexually explicit emails on the teen’s computer from Gillium.

In February 2018, investigators located the teen in a Nebraska hotel room with Gillium. The 16-year-old’s hair had been cut and dyed to alter her appearance. She told police Gillium picked her up in Arkansas and drove her to Nebraska.

State charges of trafficking a minor, computer child pornography, directing sexual performance under 17, distributing child pornography, interference with court-ordered custody and contributing to the delinquency of a minor were then dropped in order for the progression of the federal case.