ALBANY, NEW YORK - Jeffrey Butler, age 33, of Schenectady, New York, pled guilty today to receiving and possessing child pornography.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and James C. Spero, Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
As part of his guilty plea, Butler admitted that in 2014 and 2015, he used the Internet and a peer-to-peer file sharing program to download video files containing child pornography, which he saved on his computer’s hard drive. Butler further admitted to storing over 300 child pornography videos on external hard drives in his residence.
As a result of his conviction, Butler faces at least 5 years and up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, a term of supervised release of at least 5 years and up to life, and mandatory registration as a sex offender. Sentencing is scheduled for June 5, 2017 before U.S. District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emmet O’Hanlon.
This case is prosecuted as part of 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 http://www.justice.gov/psc/.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys