July 15, 2015

Wheeling Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Possession of Child Pornography

WHEELING, WV—Bernie George Baier, 51, of Wheeling, was sentenced today to 120 months in prison for possession of child pornography, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.

An investigation by the Wheeling Police Department, the West Virginia State Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation revealed that Baier obtained a wireless Internet password from his neighbor. He then used the neighbor’s wireless Internet connection to download images of child pornography throughout late 2014. Baier, who was previously convicted in 1995 of the felony offense of “Gross Sexual Imposition” in Belmont County, Ohio, pled guilty in March 2015 to one count of “Possession of Child Pornography.”

In another matter, Alex J. Galensky, 32, of, Martins Ferry, Ohio, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison. Galensky was discovered in May 2014 in possession of child pornography involving a minor under the age of 12. He pled guilty in February 2015 to a criminal Information charging him with one count of “Possession of Child Pornography,” following an investigation by the West Virginia State Police.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Vorgrin prosecuted the cases on behalf of the government.

U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey presided.