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A Tennessee man getting off a cruise that went to the Cayman Islands was caught with child pornography on his phone simply because he was randomly selected for a secondary search, according to court documents.
On September 13, Jason Alan Miller disembarked from a Carnival Horizon cruise ship at PortMiami alongside his pregnant wife and eight children, seven of whom he adopted after fostering them.
Customs and Border Protection officers pulled the 48-year-old father out of the security line so they could look through his cell phone, according to an affidavit written by an agent with Homeland Security Investigations.
Miller voluntarily provided the passcode to unlock his Samsung Galaxy phone, and investigators quickly found photos and videos that depicted female children being sexually abused, according to the affidavit viewed by Daily Mail.
One folder containing 45 illicit images was named '6yo_rare', suggesting the victims were six years old, court documents said.
His children, who were with him at the time of this discovery, ranged in age from five to 12 years old, the affidavit said.
Also revealed in the charging document was the fact that Miller has fostered approximately 20 children at his home in Tennessee.
In statements to authorities, Miller revealed that no one had access to his phone but him and also admitted he knew there was child porn on his device.
Records show he was taken to the Broward County Jail by the US Marshals Service. Later, he was transferred back into federal custody.
Miller has been charged with possession and transportation of child pornography.
If Miller is convicted of both charges, he faces a maximum of 30 years in prison based on sentencing guidelines.
CBP agents routinely search the phones of people re-entering the United States, whether they are citizens or not.
Much like Miller, Matthew Kutcher, a Pennsylvania man, was traveling through the port of Miami in April after a cruise and was caught with at least 10 videos of child pornography on his phone.
Court records show Kutcher signed a plea agreement on July 10 that will put him in prison for the next ten years at minimum.
CBP has the authority to warrantlessly search electronic devices at US ports of entry, whether that be at airports, seaports or land border crossings.
Travelers are not legally required to provide passwords to officers or unlock their devices, but refusing to do so can result in significant delays.
In this scenario, border agents may question the noncompliant traveler or confiscate their device for further inspection.
CBP officers do not have the power to deny an US citizen entry to the country solely based on them refusing a search. Noncitizens, however, can face broader consequences if they decline a search.