Middleburgh Man Sentenced for Receipt of Child Pornography

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Edward Werner, 51, of Middleburgh, New York, was sentenced yesterday to serve one hundred and twenty-one (121) months in federal prison in connection with his conviction for receipt of child pornography, announced United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and Andrew W. Vale, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Edward Werner pled guilty on March 2, 2016, to a one-count information charging him with receiving child pornography.  As part of his guilty plea, Werner admitted that between January 26, 2015 and March 3, 2015, he visited a website that provided for the display and sharing of child pornography, and accessed and viewed a series of images and videos depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

United States District Judge Mae  D’Agostino also imposed a fine in the amount of $3,000 and a fifteen (15) year term of supervised release, which will start after Werner is released from prison.  As a result of his conviction, Werner will be required to register as a sex offender after leaving prison.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Colonie, New York Police Department, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Solomon B. Shinerock.

This case is prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States 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 http://www.justice.gov/psc/.