A former University of North Florida student was sentenced to eight years and four months in prison last Friday for distributing child sex-abuse videos on a popular messaging app, according to the U.S. State Attorney's Office.
Anthony Stagnitta, 23, from St. Petersburg, pleaded guilty on May 16, 2019 to collecting and distributing child porn.
Authorities say they began investigating in February 2018 and discovered that Stagnitta engaged in online conversations about child pornography through a popular messaging app between Nov. 24 to Dec. 3, 2017. On Dec. 3, Stagnitta reportedly sent a video depicting sadistic sexual abuse of an infant, the state attorney's office said in a news release Monday.
A federal search warrant was issued at Stagnitta's home in Jacksonville, Florida. They found nearly 3,000 images depicting children being sexually abused on his phone, the news release said.
Stagnitta must also pay $132,415 in restitution to the victims, as well as register as a sex offender.
