A Saratoga Springs man was sentenced to 17½ years in federal prison for distributing and possessing child sexual abuse material, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of New York announced Friday.
Jeffrey Hart, 51, was sentenced Sept. 14 after pleading guilty. U.S. District Judge Anne Nardacci also imposed 15 years of supervised release after prison and ordered restitution to victims, though the release did not state an amount.
As part of his plea, Hart admitted sending a video depicting the sexual abuse of a child through an internet-based group messaging application. He also admitted having at least 79 images and 29 videos of child sexual abuse on his phone, according to prosecutors.
The conduct followed an earlier New York state conviction for possessing a sexual performance by a child, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Homeland Security Investigations investigated the federal case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a Justice Department initiative focused on online child exploitation.
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