FCI Atlanta Inmates Indicted in Child Sexual Abuse Material Case
ATLANTA, Georgia – Four inmates at the Federal Correctional Institution in Atlanta now face federal charges for sharing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) behind bars, and the FCI Atlanta inmates indicted in the case include a former Denver physician. Prosecutors say the men used smuggled cell phones and a prison library copy machine to pass the images around.
38-year-old Justin Neisler of Denver, Colorado, appeared in federal court Tuesday for arraignment on two counts of possessing CSAM while in custody. Three other inmates were indicted earlier this year on related charges.
How investigators say it worked
According to U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg, Federal Bureau of Prisons investigators at FCI Atlanta learned in March 2026 that inmates were receiving, possessing and distributing CSAM among themselves.
Prosecutors said 38-year-old Dustin Bishop of Raleigh, North Carolina, and at least one other inmate got contraband cell phones and used them to search the dark web. Bishop is serving a 10-year sentence for receipt of CSAM. The men downloaded the material onto SD cards taken from MP3 players, prosecutors said.
Bishop and another inmate then used an SD card reader, also contraband, to print the images on the prison library copy machine, sometimes on the back of religious material, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said the two sold the printouts to other inmates.
Buyers included 34-year-old Jacob Breslin of Merritt Island, Florida, who is serving a 15-year sentence for possessing and receiving CSAM. Bishop and another inmate also sold obscene drawings of fictitious children in sexually explicit situations to other inmates, including 29-year-old Harold Nuckols of Henrico, Virginia, prosecutors said. Nuckols is serving a sentence of more than four years for possessing CSAM.
Investigators said they found a contraband cell phone containing CSAM under Neisler’s pillow. Neisler is a former Denver-based physician serving a 23-year sentence for producing CSAM. Bureau of Prisons investigators found about 450 CSAM images and videos at the prison during the investigation.
The charges
- Justin Neisler: A grand jury indicted him October 27, 2026, on charges of possessing CSAM. He was arraigned Tuesday.
- Dustin Bishop: A grand jury indicted him August 25, 2026, on charges of distributing CSAM. He was arraigned August 31.
- Jacob Breslin: A grand jury indicted him July 28, 2026, on charges of receiving and possessing CSAM. He was arraigned August 7.
- Harold Nuckols: A grand jury indicted him July 28, 2026, on charges of possessing obscene depictions of children engaged in sexually explicit conduct. He was arraigned August 7.
If convicted, Neisler and Nuckols face at least 10 years in prison without the possibility of parole. Bishop and Breslin face at least 15 years without parole. The court may order that any new sentence run consecutively to the sentence each man is serving now.
Officials respond
“Prison bars allegedly did not stop these defendants from re-victimizing innocent children for their perverted and depraved gratification,”
Hertzberg said. “Contraband cell phones pose a clear risk to public safety, and my office will continue to arrest, prosecute, and seek additional prison time for inmates who commit new crimes, especially crimes involving child exploitation, while in custody.”
Marlo Graham, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta, also commented.
“The exploitation of children is a horrific crime, and incarceration does not put an end to our responsibility to protect victims. These allegations demonstrate the lengths some offenders will go to continue their abuse, even behind prison walls,”
Graham said. “The FBI and our partners at the Bureau of Prisons will continue working together to identify, investigate, and hold accountable anyone who exploits children.”
FCI Atlanta is a low-security federal prison with an attached detention facility for male inmates at 601 McDonough Boulevard SE. The FBI investigated the case with help from the Special Investigations Section of the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew R. LaGrone is prosecuting.
An indictment contains only charges. The defendants are presumed innocent, and the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
In a separate Georgia case, a Central State Prison inmate admitted having child sexual abuse material on an altered JPay tablet.
