BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Craig Marranca, 32, of Buffalo, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo to possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, and a $250,000.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura A. Higgins, who is handling the case, stated that on Sept. 18, 2017, New York State Police undercover investigators downloaded an image containing child pornography from the eMule/eDonkey peer-to-peer network. Investigators traced the image to an IP address belonging to the defendant’s spouse. The image was recovered later from Marranca’s laptop seized on Oct. 27, 2017, during the execution of a search warrant at the defendant’s residence. A total of 18 electronic devices were seized during the search, including the laptop which contained 1,771 files of child pornography. Some of the images included prepubescent minors and depictions of violence.
The plea is the result of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly, and the New York State Police, under the direction of Major James Hall.
Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 27, 2021, at 9:30 a.m. before Judge Vilardo. #
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
