Columbus man pleads guilty to producing child porn

A 50-year-old Columbus man pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography in federal court Monday and faces up to 30 years in prison.

Scott M. Johnson will be sentenced on Aug. 16 by U.S. District Court Judge Clay Land. He faces a minimum of 15 years in prison. He admitted in court to video-recording a 6-year-old girl he was molesting.

Johnson was arrested by Columbus Police on March 19, 2015, and charged with two counts of aggravated child abuse and one count of enticing a child for indecent purposes. Using search warrants obtained after the girl told two adults of the abuse, police discovered more than 5,500 child pornography images and 41 child pornography videos on Johnson’s nine computers. The case was removed to federal court.

Johnson, who previously worked 14 years for the Housing Authority of Columbus, still has related sexual exploitation cases pending in Muscogee County Superior Court.

The investigation was conducted by Columbus Police, Lee County (Ala.) Sheriff’s Office, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Secret Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Crawford Seals prosecuted.

This story was originally published May 2, 2016 at 3:36 PM with the headline "Columbus man pleads guilty to producing child porn."