Lockport Man Arrested On Child Pornography Charges

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 Sterling Jones, 23, of Lockport, NY, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with possession of child pornography. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and $250,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Cantil, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, in March 2017, the FBI’s CyberTipLine received a report about an account on DropBox, Inc. that belonged to the defendant. On April 7, 2017, a federal search warrant was executed at the defendant’s residence at 153 Grand Street, Apartment 2, in Lockport. During the search, officers seized Jones’ cellular telephone. Following a forensic analysis of the phone, investigators discovered a second DropBox account, which contained approximately 295 videos and 11 images of child pornography. Some of the images depicted prepubescent children.

The defendant made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder and is being held in custody.

The criminal complaint is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Adam S. Cohen.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.