WASHINGTON - Dustin Metz, 30, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to a federal charge of possession of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., John P. Torres, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Washington, D.C., and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Metz entered the guilty plea in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The Honorable Senior Judge Royce C. Lamberth is to sentence him on Oct. 17, 2013. Metz faces a maximum sentence of 20 years of imprisonment, as well as a potential fine of $250,000.
According to a statement of offense signed by the defendant as well as the government, between September 2012 and April 2013, Metz possessed child pornography on his personal computer at his residence in Washington, D.C. On various dates during that time-frame, Metz used a peer-to-peer file sharing program to download to his computer numerous images and videos depicting child pornography and at the same time make those images and videos available for other users of the program to download themselves. Metz viewed the images and videos and then deleted them.
On April 17, 2013, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Metz’s home and seized various items, including two laptop computers. Law enforcement subsequently discovered evidence showing that Metz had possessed child pornography on both of the computers, including at least one video depicting child pornography and remnants of additional video and image files indicative of child pornography. Metz was arrested on May 9, 2013.
In announcing the guilty plea, U.S. Attorney Machen, Special Agent in Charge Torres, and Chief Lanier praised the work of the HSI special agents and MPD detectives who investigated the case. They also commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Cassidy Kesler Pinegar, who is prosecuting the case.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
