A Topsham resident, Henry Eichman, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release for producing child pornography involving four minors. The sentence was handed down by Chief U.S. District Judge Lance E. Walker in Portland, Maine. Eichman had pleaded guilty to the charges on December 10, 2024.
The investigation began in August 2022 when an employee at a Brunswick landscaping company discovered two laptops and several hard drives hidden under a kayak on the company’s property. Upon opening the devices, the worker found child sexual abuse material and identified Eichman, a former employee, in some of the files. Homeland Security Investigations conducted a forensic examination and recovered more than 500 images and videos depicting child sexual abuse material. The evidence included videos showing Eichman setting up recording equipment and participating in the sexual abuse of minors between 2014 and 2016. The victims were all under the age of 12.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office is limiting identifying information to protect the minor victims’ privacy.”
Eichman had previously entered an Alford plea in state court in 2018 related to sexual abuse of children and is currently serving a ten-year state sentence. The new federal sentence will be served after his current incarceration ends.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations with support from both the Topsham Police Department and Brunswick Police Department.
According to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), there were approximately 36 million reports concerning possession, manufacture, or distribution of child sexual abuse materials filed in 2023. Reports can be made through their online portal at https://report.cybertip.org or by calling 1-800-843-5678.
Victims or those seeking assistance related to sexual assault or abuse in Maine can contact a free, private statewide helpline available around the clock at 1-800-871-7741.
This prosecution falls under Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child exploitation using federal, state, and local resources. More details about this program are available at https://www.justice.gov/usao-me/psc.
