Man Pleads Guilty to Production and Possession of Child Pornography

BUFFALO, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Paul Hackett, 45, of Buffalo, New York, pleaded guilty before Chief U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny to production and possession of child pornography. Under the 2001 edition of the production of child pornography statute in effect when the defendant committed the crime, Hackett faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, a maximum of 20 years, a fine of $250,000, and a minimum of five years’ supervised release and up to life. The possession of child pornography charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and a minimum five years’ supervised release and up to life.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron J. Mango, who is handling the case, stated that from October 30, 1998 through August 20, 2001, the defendant knowingly coerced a minor female victim to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing visual depictions of such conduct. During that time, the victim was 15 to 17 years old. While Hackett was using the victim to engage in sexually explicit conduct, he took approximately 16 Polaroid photographs of the victim. Those pictures were subsequently found in the defendant’s residence in October of 2011.

The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Christopher M. Piehota, and detectives with the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Daniel Derenda.

Sentencing is scheduled for August 14, 2012 at 9:00 a.m. in Buffalo, New York, before Judge Skretny.