Elementary school teacher, Boy Scout volunteer pleads guilty to child porn

A former Tenino Elementary School teacher who also tutored children and volunteered for the Boy Scouts pleaded guilty Friday in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to possession of child pornography.

James Donald Mobley, 47, was arrested in January 2013 on a criminal complaint charging him with receipt and possession of child pornography, said U.S. District Attorney Jenny Durkan.

Mobley was arrested as part of “Project Spade,” an investigation into Toronto-based website Azovfilms.com. The company claimed to be a provider of “naturist films,” but was actually a distributor of child pornography.

The investigation was led in the United States by the Postal Inspection Service. Mobley is one of 348 people arrested worldwide. There were 386 children were rescued from direct abuse and exploitation, according to Durkan.

Under the terms of a plea agreement, Mobley will undergo a psycho-sexual evaluation, will register as a sex offender and will undergo sexual deviancy treatment. Both the prosecution and defense will recommend a four year prison term when he is sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ronald B. Leighton on March 21, 2014. The judge can impose a maximum of 20 years in prison.

Court documents say Mobley repeatedly purchased child pornography from the company between February 2009 and January 2011.