Phenix City Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison for Production and Distribution of Child Sexual Abuse Material

Montgomery, Ala. - Today, Acting United States Attorney Kevin Davidson announced the sentencing of a Phenix City, Alabama man for producing and distributing child sexual abuse material. On May 12, 2025, a federal judge ordered 46-year-old Corey Joseph Brand to serve 360 months in prison. The judge also ordered that Brand remain on supervised release for five years following his prison term and to register as a sex offender. There is no parole in the federal system.

According to Brand's plea agreement and other court records, in September 2023, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received a tip about the online upload of child sexual abuse materials, including images of a nude young female, using a social media website. The user of the account claimed to be an active-duty soldier in Georgia. The tip was referred to the Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID), which ultimately identified Brand as the source of the uploads. The investigation revealed that Brand deceptively used another individual's identity to establish the account. Brand formally served in the Army but had previously been discharged.

A search warrant was executed at Brand's residence in Phenix City, where agents examined multiple electronic devices. Forensic analysis revealed numerous images of child sexual abuse materials stored on those devices along with evidence that the images had been distributed to others. Further investigation revealed that Brand had previously used a minor victim to produce child sexual abuse material.

In 2024, a federal grand jury in Montgomery, Alabama charged Brand with producing and distributing child sexual abuse material. Brand pleaded guilty to those charges on February 7, 2025.

The Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigated this case, with assistance from the Muscogee County, Georgia Sheriff's Office, the Columbus, Georgia Police Department, the Phenix City, Alabama Police Department, the Auburn, Alabama Police Department, and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). Assistant United States Attorney Tara S. Ratz prosecuted the case.

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. Project Safe Childhood 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 Justice.gov/PSC.