Poteau Resident Pleads Guilty To Possession Of Child Sexual Exploitation Material

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Clifford Elmo Smith, age 41, of Poteau, Oklahoma, entered a guilty plea to one count of Possession of Certain Material Involving the Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The Indictment alleged that beginning on or about April 20, 2025, and continuing until on or about January 13, 2026, Smith knowingly possessed one or more matters which contained visual depictions of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct, transported by, in, and affecting interstate and foreign commerce, which Smith accessed with the intent to view.

The charge arose from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The Honorable Gerald L. Jackson, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report.

A U.S. District Court Judge will determine the sentence to be imposed after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Smith will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending sentencing.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Pippin represented the United States.