Hoosier State Today

Joseph Grant Flamion, 47, of Jeffersonville, has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison, followed by 15 years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to sexual exploitation of a child and possession of child sexual abuse material.

According to court documents, in 2021 and 2022, Flamion secretly used electronic devices to record or attempt to record a child victim in places where the child would be undressing or nude. Flamion placed a hidden camera in the child’s bathroom and bedroom and routinely held a cell phone camera or another device under doors to record the child fully nude or undressing. The victim was 13 and 14 years old when the recordings were made.

In October of 2021, Flamion brought a hidden camera on a trip to Florida with the child. He placed it in the hotel bathroom and recorded the child while showering. The minor victim and a witness discovered Flamion's actions and reported them to the Indiana Department of Child Services. Flamion subsequently destroyed or disposed of the hidden camera before law enforcement could seize it.

On July 5, 2022, Jeffersonville Police conducted court-authorized searches of Flamion's person and residence. Police seized electronic devices containing secretly recorded videos of the victim nude or partially nude. Investigators also found similar videos on Flamion’s iPhone and MicroSD card. In his guilty plea, Flamion admitted he created these recordings for his own sexual gratification.

"All children deserve to live in a home that is a place of safety and love," said Zachary A. Myers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. "This defendant used his proximity to a child to secretly invade their safety and dignity."

FBI Indianapolis Special Agent in Charge Herbert J. Stapleton stated: "The defendant took advantage of a child's vulnerability in their own home – a place where they should feel safe."

Chief Kenny Kavanaugh of the Jeffersonville Police Department thanked various agencies for their assistance: "Our partnership with these agencies enabled us to conduct a sound investigation which led to a successful prosecution."

The FBI, Indiana State Police, and Jeffersonville Police Department investigated this case. Chief U.S. District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt imposed the sentence along with $10,000 in restitution, $7,500 in fines, and mandated sex offender registration for Flamion.

U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany J. Preston for prosecuting this case.

This case was part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse.

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