Federal investigators arrested a man this week after a cyber tip linked him to new child‑pornography activity on a chatroom website.
The suspect, a 40‑year‑old registered sex offender formerly from Ridge Road in Ontario and now living in Webster, is charged with possession, receipt, and distribution of child pornography. Prosecutors say the charges carry a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison and a maximum of 40 years.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Katelyn M. Hartford, the investigation began in November 2023 when the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a CyberTip from Stelivo LLC, the company behind several chatroom sites including FreeChat. The report stated the suspect uploaded about 11 images of suspected child pornography to a site operated by the company.
Investigators say the man has prior convictions, including a 2021 conviction for attempted possession of a sexual performance by a child and a probation violation arrest in November 2023. During a search at the Ridge Road residence connected to those earlier cases, officers seized two cell phones. Forensic analysis recovered thousands of suspected child‑pornography images and videos across both devices. The suspect made an initial appearance before a U.S. magistrate judge and is being held pending a detention hearing.
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