A Clearwater man has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for receiving child sexual abuse material involving an infant. U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington handed down the sentence to William Jack Filing, age 30, of Clearwater. In addition to the prison term, Filing is required to register as a sex offender and will be subject to lifetime supervision after his release. A federal jury convicted him on July 15, 2025.
Evidence presented during the trial showed that Filing used the online persona “Calcifer_Starflame” to communicate with a co-conspirator on a social media platform. During these conversations, he expressed his desire to sexually abuse a baby boy and requested videos of an infant being sexually abused from the co-conspirator. After receiving these videos, Filing stated that it was his “daydream” to commit such acts himself and sent explicit photos of himself in return. When asked about his preferred age range, he replied: “1-4, maybe 5 or 6, less words the better.”
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations–Tampa with support from the Clearwater Police Department and the Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce of Central Florida. Assistant United States Attorneys Erin Claire Favorit and Abigail K. King prosecuted the case.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse. The program coordinates efforts among federal, state, and local agencies to locate offenders who exploit children and rescue victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.justice.gov/psc.
According to officials, publication of this matter was delayed due to a government shutdown but is now available following a return to normal operations.
