Buffalo Man Sentenced For Possession Of Child Pornography

CONTACT:      Barbara Burns
PHONE:         (716) 843-5817
FAX:            (716) 551-3051

BUFFALO, N.Y.- Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy Jr. announced today that Johannes Hiram, 50, of Buffalo, NY, who was convicted of possession of child pornography, was sentenced to 188 months in prison and lifetime supervised release by U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott S. Allen, Jr., who handled the case, stated that on March 14, 2014, law enforcement officers searched the defendant’s residence on Linview Terrace in Buffalo. The officers recovered a Compaq Presario desktop computer and a Hewlett Packard mini laptop. A subsequent forensic examination determined that the devices contained approximately 750 image files and 20 videos containing child pornography. Over 400 of the image files depicted the violent sexual abuse of children.  Some of the images also depicted child victims under the age of 12.

After his arrest in March 2014, Hiram pleaded guilty in Erie County Court on May 28, 2014, to sexual contact with an individual less than 11 years old. As a result, the defendant is already a registered sex offender.

The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Daniel Derenda and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Child Exploitation Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Adam S. Cohen. The task force includes the Buffalo Police, Cheektowaga Police Department, and Niagara County Sherriff’s Office.