Northern Nevada Man Sentenced to More Than 17 Years in Prison for Child Pornography Offense

RENO—A Reno man was sentenced today to 17 ½ years in federal prison for his possession and receipt of thousands of images of child pornography, announced Daniel G. Bogden, United States Attorney for the District of Nevada.

Matthias Adam Haddock, 39, who pleaded guilty in July to receipt of child pornography, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Larry R. Hicks. Haddock had a prior felony conviction in Oregon for encouraging the sexual abuse of a minor and was subject to an increased mandatory minimum sentence under federal law.

“If you are a registered sex offender and commit sex crimes against children, you will face significant federal prison time when convicted,” said U.S. Attorney Bogden. “Investigators who specialize in hunting down child predators will locate you and ensure that you are prosecuted.”

Between October 2011 and October 2012, an investigator with the Washoe County Sheriff’s Department in Reno conducted an online undercover investigation of Internet file sharing networks in an effort to identify persons who received or possessed child pornography in the northern Nevada area. Investigators determined that Haddock had child pornography files available to others for download. Investigators also determined that Haddock was a registered sex offender. A federal search warrant was executed at Haddock’s home in November 2012, and it was determined that Haddock possessed and had received over 2,000 images and 49 videos of child pornography. The images possessed and or viewed by the defendant included depictions of prepubescent children engaged in sexually explicit conduct, including sadistic and masochistic conduct.

Following release from prison, Haddock will be placed on lifetime supervised release and will be required to register as a convicted sex offender.

The cases were investigated by the Northern Nevada Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, which includes the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, the Nevada Attorney General’s Office, and the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Carla Higginbotham.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about PSC, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.