A former U.S. Army soldier, who admitted that he distributed child pornography, was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years in prison.
Joshua Gamble, 30, was once stationed at Fort Gordon. That was before FBI agents raided his barracks at the Army training base in Augusta last year and arrested him, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia said in a news release.
Gamble pleaded guilty in May to a count of distribution of child pornography. During a hearing Wednesday, U.S. District Court Chief Judge J. Randal Hall handed down the 15-year sentence and ordered Gamble to pay a $5,000 fine. The ex-soldier must also register as a sex offender and serve 20 years under court supervision following his prison term.
“Joshua Gamble could have served honorably in the military, but instead served his own depravity by using the internet to exploit vulnerable children,” said David H. Estes, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.
According to court records, FBI agents were investigating reports of child pornography being distributed in August 2021 via an Internet chat application when a tip led them to Gamble. The agents searched Gamble’s room at the Fort Gordon barracks, which led to his arrest in October.
Investigators also learned that Gamble worked as a paraprofessional at a middle school in Minnesota before joining the Army in May 2021.
“This sentence should send a clear message to anyone who would try to take advantage of innocent children,” said Keri Farley, special agent in charge of FBI Atlanta. “Gamble’s 15 years in prison will give him plenty of time to think about his unacceptable behavior, but more importantly while in prison, he won’t be able to do harm to any more children.”
