Greece Man Found Guilty Of Receiving And Possessing Child Pornography Following Non-Jury Trial

CONTACT:    Barbara Burns 
PHONE:       (716) 843-5817
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BUFFALO, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Nicholas M. Skvarla, of Greece, NY, was found guilty of receipt and possession of child pornography by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara following a non-jury trial. The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years and a $250,000 fine. 

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Aaron J. Mango and Bradley E. Tyler, who are handling the case, stated that in March 2008, the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department conducted an undercover peer to peer internet file sharing investigation. A deputy found numerous image and video files available for download from a particular Internet Protocol (IP) address. Further investigation determined the IP address belonged to the defendant.

The investigator downloaded images and videos over five dates in April, May and July of 2008. Of the 24 images and videos downloaded, at least 10 appeared to depict children under the age of 17 and depict minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. On September 11, 2008, investigators conducted a search warrant at Skvarla’s Forgham Road residence at which time the defendant was arrested. 

Several items seized from the defendant’s residence were turned over the Western New York Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory. A forensic examination determined that Skvarla’s computer and hard drive contained 139 images and 112 videos of suspected child pornography. A total of 32 known children were identified in the images.   

The verdict is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department, under the direction of Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn, the Federal Bureau of Investigation Cyber Crime Task Force, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero, and the Western New York Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory.

Sentencing is scheduled for May 26, 2015 at 12:30 p.m. before Judge Arcara.