Mars Man Sentenced to Three Years in Prison for Possessing Child Pornography
| U.S. Attorney’s Office January 06, 2012 |
PITTSBURGH, PA—A resident of Butler County, Penn., has pleaded guilty to a charge of possessing material depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor, and has been sentenced in federal court to 36 months in prison to be followed by 10 years of supervised release, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Chief United States District Judge Gary L. Lancaster imposed the sentence on Bradley J. Schrott, 29.
According to information presented to the court during the guilty plea phase of the proceeding, on or about April 6, 2010, Schrott possessed still images and videos containing child pornography in computer graphics files. During an undercover operation undertaken by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in connection with the Innocent Images National Initiative, Schrott’s computer was identified as one sharing in excess of 7,500 files containing child pornography or bearing titles indicative of child pornography. Ninety-three such computer files were downloaded by the undercover agent and served as the partial basis of a search warrant executed at Schrott’s home on April 6, 2010. Computers and computer equipment were seized during the search and later forensically examined. Schrott was found to be in possession of moer than 45 videos and 2,000 still images depicting the sexual exploitation of minor children.
Assistant United States Attorney Carolyn J. Bloch prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Schrott.
Launched in February 2006, Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.