York Man Convicted of Child Pornography Charges

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that a York man has been convicted of the production of child pornography and the distribution, receipt, and possession of images depicting the sexual abuse of children.

According to United States Attorney Peter J. Smith, Brian William Walpole, age 43, of York, was found guilty of all counts of the Indictment yesterday following a one-day trial before United States District Court Chief Judge Yvette Kane and a jury in Harrisburg. Walpole faces imprisonment up to 60 years along with a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment on the production count and a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years’ imprisonment on the distribution and receipt count. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

Trial testimony showed that Walpole shared numerous image and video files that depicted the sexual abuse of children in a peer to peer file sharing program. The investigation further revealed that Walpole had taken numerous videos of a minor boy engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Walpole was indicted in December 2010.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit: www.projectsafechildhood.gov/

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Northern York County Regional Police Department. Prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Daryl F. Bloom.