Former Booneville coach sentenced for child exploitation
Credit: U.S. Attorney’s Office – Northern District of Mississippi
A former Booneville High School assistant basketball coach was sentenced to serve ten years in prison on Wednesday following his conviction for online enticement of a minor.
According to court documents, Kenny Paul Geno, 28 years old, used a minor to make and produce child sexual abuse materials, and enticed minor students to self-produce “nudes” to send to him. The investigation commenced in October of 2022, when the FBI received a complaint alleging that Geno, an assistant basketball coach at Booneville High school, was sending minors at BHS inappropriate Snapchat communications. Several current and former female students subsequently reported that Geno solicited images of sexually explicit conduct over Snapchat. At least one former student advised that she engaged in sexual contact with Geno that he recorded on his cell phone. During the ongoing investigation, several videos of child sexual abuse material involving minor victims were recovered on Geno’s cell phone hidden within an encrypted application used to store the media.
On Wednesday, Feb. 21, Chief U.S. District Judge Debra M. Brown ordered Geno to serve 120 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release. Geno will also be required to register as a sex offender.
“Today’s sentence is an important reminder that no one is above the law and that we will always seek to hold accountable individuals who abuse the trust of the public and children who are entrusted to their care,” remarked U.S. Attorney Clay Joyner. “We appreciate the work of law enforcement in this case to see that this defendant spends the next ten years where he belongs, in prison.”
“Mr. Kenny Paul Geno’s actions violated the innocence and trust of many young children,” said FBI Acting Special Agent In Charge Maher Dimachkie. “The FBI is committed to combating crimes against children and will continue to engage with law enforcement partners and community leaders to protect children. The FBI will hold individuals like Mr. Geno accountable for their actions.”
The FBI investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Parker King prosecuted the case.
