A Vancouver man has been sentenced to about 8 1/2 years in prison for sexually abusing an infant boy and displaying the sex abuse over the Internet.
Anthony G. Fontana, 23, pleaded guilty Friday in Clark County Superior Court to first-degree rape of a child.
He was sentenced to 104 months in prison by Judge Diane Woolard. After completing the prison term, Fontana will be under community supervision and must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
The investigation into the sex abuse began in August 2011 following an anonymous tip to Child Protective Services. Fontana knew the boy, who was younger than 1 year old at the time, because the baby was a child of a former acquaintance, said Vancouver police Sgt. John Chapman.
Fontana reportedly transmitted the sex abuse of the boy over the Internet with a webcam, according to a press release from the Vancouver Police Department.
The police department’s digital evidence cybercrimes unit began investigating, initiating search warrants from Skype and Cricket phones. After questioning Fontana, the suspect admitted to committing the sex abuse, according to the press release.
The police department’s investigation led to a separate child pornography investigation in Pennsylvania.
Chapman said the infant is safe; a Child Protective Services investigation is pending.
The department’s cybercrimes unit has launched more than 50 local investigations so far this year related to the possession, production or distribution of depictions of child sexual abuse.
