Former UF psychiatrist sentenced to over seven years in federal prison for distribution of child pornography

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Jesse Roger Armstrong, 35, a former UF psychiatrist, was sentenced to ninety months in prison after previously pleading guilty to distribution of child pornography. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a CyberTip on August 23, 2024 with two images, at least one of which showed a nude pre-pubescent female engaging in a sexual act with a second pre-pubescent female. The image had been uploaded to Bing to conduct a reverse image search.

A subpoena to Cox for the upload IP address produced the address of Armstrong’s home in Haile Plantation. The Gainesville Police Department detective conducting the investigation also reported that Armstrong was employed by the University of Florida as a psychiatrist and that the University of Florida Police Department confirmed his employment. According to a release today from U.S. Attorney Heekin, Armstrong was completing his residency when he was arrested.

Officers seized “numerous” electronic devices from Armstrong’s home while executing a search warrant in December 2024, and a forensic analysis of the devices reportedly found 10 images of child exploitation material that showed pre-pubescent females and at least one male engaging in various sexual acts.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said, “Our state and federal law enforcement partners are committed to identifying, investigating, and rooting out the scourge of exploitation and sexual abuse of children online, and my office will continue to back up those efforts with aggressive prosecutions of anyone found to be peddling in child sexual abuse material. Keeping our kids safe is the highest priority for my office, and it begins with sending predators like this defendant to prison.”

“Keeping our children safe online is a priority,” said Chief Nelson Moya, Gainesville Police Department. “We will continue to pursue anyone who chooses to prey on our children via the internet.”

“HSI is committed to protecting children from exploitation, especially when offenders are in trusted roles like physicians,” said Nick Ingegno, Assistant Special Agent in Charge for HSI in Tallahassee. “Abusing that trust is unacceptable, and we will continue working with our partners to hold these individuals accountable and safeguard our communities.”

The case involved a joint investigation by the Gainesville Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children Unit and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam Hapner.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice and led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), it marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.