Queensbury Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charges

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Chad Knowlton, age 24, of Queensbury, New York, pled guilty today to distributing, receiving and possessing child pornography.

The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and Janelle M. Miller, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

As part of his guilty plea, Knowlton admitted to using a custom-built desktop computer equipped with peer-to-peer file-sharing software to download and distribute child pornography.  Knowlton also admitted to using a smartphone to download additional child pornography.  Overall, Knowlton downloaded and retained more than 1,000 videos and images depicting child pornography. 

Sentencing is scheduled for October 9, 2018 before Senior United States Judge Thomas J. McAvoy.  Knowlton, who is detained pending sentencing, faces a minimum 5 years and up to 20 years in prison, a maximum $250,000 fine, and a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of at least 5 years and up to life.  A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors. Knowlton will also be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison. 

Knowlton is also facing state charges alleging the sexual abuse of children in Warren County.  He is innocent unless and until proven guilty of those charges.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the New York State Police, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emmet O’Hanlon.

Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc