Gainesville man sentenced to 12 years in prison on child pornography charges

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Alex Dixon Boatwright, 35, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison, followed by 10 years of sexual offender probation, after pleading nolo contendere to nine counts of possession of child pornography.

On November 5, 2024, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a CyberTip from Google that included 60 videos and two images of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). The CSAM content was uploaded to an account with the name “Alex Boatwright” between June 2021 and October 2024 and was still on the account’s Google Drive as of the date of the CyberTip. Gainesville Police Department investigated the CyberTip.

The IP addresses associated with the tip led to Boatwright’s home address and cell phone, and his name and phone number were associated with the Google account; Boatwright was arrested in August 2025. Click here for more information about the investigation.

According to the plea agreement, the charges carry a maximum sentence of 60 years in prison.

Judge Susanne Wilson Bullard sentenced Boatwright to three consecutive terms of five years, five years, and two years (along with four concurrent five-year sentences and two concurrent two-year sentences), for a total of 12 years, with credit for 294 days served. Boatwright will serve 10 years of sexual offender probation after he is released from prison.