For Immediate Release:
October 7, 2026
For press inquiries only, contact:
Amanda Priest (334) 322-5694
William Califf (334) 604-3230
(Montgomery, Ala) – Attorney General Steve Marshall today announced the indictment and arrest of two Mobile County men for multiple counts of possession of child pornography.
John Seibert, 65, of Theodore was indicted in September by the Mobile County Grand Jury and arrested October 5th. Seibert is charged with 20 counts of Possession of Obscene Material (Class C felonies) and 5 counts of Possession with Intent to Disseminate Obscene Material (Class B felonies). Seibert is being held in Mobile County Metro Jail and bond was set at $150,000.
Joseph Bates III, 37, of Mobile was indicted in September by the Mobile County Grand Jury and arrested October 5th. Bates is charged with 10 counts of Possession of Obscene Material (Class C felonies) and 10 counts of Possession with Intent to Disseminate Obscene Material (Class B felonies). Bates is being held in Mobile County Metro Jail and bond was set at $300,000.
If convicted of a Class C felony, the penalty ranges from one year and a day to 10 years for each count. If convicted of a Class B felony, the penalty ranges from two years and a day to 20 years per count.
Both suspects were arrested Monday by Special Agents of the Attorney General’s Cyber Crime Unit. Attorney General Marshall is grateful for the assistance from the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team in executing the search warrants and the apprehension of both suspects.
Attorney General Marshall commends the exceptional work of the Cyber Crime Unit of the Attorney General’s Investigations Division, noting in particular Assistant Attorney General Leigh Gwathney, who is prosecuting the cases, and Senior Special Agent Colin Bradley, who is investigating them.
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