BINGHAMTON, NEW YORK - On Thursday, Aug. 1, 2019, after a four-day trial, a Binghamton jury found Daniel M. Passero, Jr., of Herkimer County, guilty of receiving and possessing child pornography, announced United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and Kevin M. Kelly, Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
The jury found that between July of 2015 and Jan. 13, 2016 Passero downloaded hundreds of sexually explicit images of children, and saved them to a memory card that was later found in a smartphone recovered at Passero’s home.
At the time of the offense, Passero was on parole for a prior sex offense against a child. As a result, he faces a sentence of between 15 and 60 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release of at least 5 years and up to life. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant was convicted of violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.
This case was investigated by United States Homeland Security Investigations, the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, and the New York State Police, with assistance from the Gloversville Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Burlington Police Department and Iowa Division of Criminal Investigations.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Perry and Kristen Grabowski, as a part of Project Safe Childhood. Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
