Saratoga County Man Indicted on Child Pornography Charge

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Peter Farnum, age 41, of Ballston Lake, New York, was indicted yesterday for possession of child pornography.

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

Farnum was arrested July 26, 2017, on a criminal complaint. According to the complaint, Farnum used a home computer between October 2015 and April 2016 to view and store thousands of files containing child pornography. As alleged in the complaint and indictment, the images included children under 12 years old.

The charges in the complaint and indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Farnum will be arraigned at a later date. If convicted, he faces 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.

This case is being investigated by the FBI and its Child Exploitation Task Force, with the assistance of the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph A. Giovannetti.