Feds charge Columbia man with 22 counts of producing child porn, sex trafficking
Federal prosecutors have charged a Columbia man with coercing ten minors aged between 5 and 16 into producing child pornography.
Leon Bobby Jones-Hubbard was charged with 22 counts, including sex trafficking, producing child pornography and coercion and enticement of a minor, according to an indictment released Friday by the United States Attorney’s Office for South Carolina.
His alleged victims spanned the South and the Midwest, from Alabama, Arkansas and Texas to Wisconsin and Michigan. The crimes Jones-Hubbard is accused of took place between 2023 and 2024.
Jones-Hubbard, who also used the names Mark Jenkins, Treyvon Jones, Ty, Big Daddy Ty, Ty Big Dawg and DiceAme, contacted his victims over Facebook and Facebook messenger, according to the indictment. Jones-Hubbard allegedly made payments to the victims through digital payment platforms, including Meta Pay, CashApp and PayPal, to coerce and entice them into producing child pornography.
An eleventh victim was an adult from Arkansas with a severe development disability, according to the indictment. Jones-Hubbard allegedly paid an intermediary to coerce the adult victim into sex acts through physical restraint, physical force, and violence.
Jones-Hubbard, who was arrested Thursday, has pleaded not guilty, according to court filings. He is represented by a federal public defender.
If convicted, Jones-Hubbard is facing up to life in prison, with mandatory minimum penalties of 15 years and 10 years on some charges. He also faces fines of up to $250,000 per charge and mandatory restitution to his victims. Were he released, he would also be required to register as a sex offender and face court-ordered supervision.
In a statement, the US Attorney’s Office said that this case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. The effort is a collaboration of federal, state and local agencies to arrest and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Columbia Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elliott B. Daniels and E. Elizabeth Major are prosecuting the case.