
Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.
Erie, Pennsylvania: United States Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania Cindy K. Chung announced earlier today that Gregory Samuel Mancini had been sentenced to 114 months, or 9.5 years, in federal prison for violation of federal child sexual exploitation laws.
United States District Judge Susan Paradise Baxter was responsible for sentencing.
In addition to the time in prison, Mancini, 32, will be subject to 15 years of supervised release and will pay $3,000 in restitution.
In January 2022, Mancini plead guilty to charges of traveling in interstate commerce for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct, knowingly receiving and attempting to receive images of child sexual abuse, and knowingly possessing and attempt to possess child pornography.
Before being indicted on these charges Mancini had no criminal record.
According to the prosecutors, Mancini traveled to Georgia from Erie, Pennsylvania for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with a 13-year-old boy that he had met online while playing Fortnight.
Mancini did not hide his intention of engaging in sex acts with the minor during conversations, and told the boy to keep quiet about this contact and his intention to meet him on November 2, 2018.
Between scheduling the meeting and his arrival however, the Hall County Sheriff's Office was notified and assumed the boy's identity online, communicating with Mancini directly. Believing that he was still speaking with the 13-year-old boy, Mancini told the undercover detective, "I want you, I love you."
Following his arrest, it was learned that Mancini had also been using the dark web to obtain images depicting child sexual abuse. A search warrant resulted in the seizure of two computers and a thumb drive which were found to contain hundreds of items depicting the abuse of children as young as two.
When announcing the sentence Judge Baxter expressed grave concern over the fact that Mancini was a teacher at Barber National Institute and basketball coach at Cathedral Prep during the time that these offenses were committed.