Former School Teacher Pleads Guilty To Child Pornography Charge

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

ROCHESTER, N.Y.—Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Steven Choi, 41, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford. The charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Marangola, who is handling the case, stated that the FBI Child Exploitation Task Force identified the defendant accessing child pornography online. A forensic examination of that computer recovered sexually explicit photographs of prepubescent girls. Choi is no longer an English teacher with the Holley Central School District.

The plea is the culmination of an investigation by Special Agents of 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 Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, the Rochester Police Department, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations, and the Greece Police Department.

Sentencing is scheduled for May 15, 2017, at 3:00 p.m. before Judge Wolford.