A Catonsville man has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for possessing child sexual abuse material as a repeat offender. U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett handed down the sentence to Steven Christopher Kelban, 50, who will also be subject to lifetime supervised release.
The announcement was made by Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, along with Special Agent in Charge William J. DelBagno of the FBI’s Baltimore Field Office, Baltimore County State’s Attorney Scott Shellenberger, and Chief Robert McCullough of the Baltimore County Police Department.
According to court documents, Kelban had previously been convicted twice for similar offenses: once in 2015 in Shelby County, Alabama for possession of obscene matter involving minors under 17, and again in 2016 in Baltimore County, Maryland for distributing child pornography.
After being released from prison in Alabama on November 20, 2023, Kelban returned to Maryland and registered as a sex offender on November 21 at a Baltimore County address.
On November 28, investigators from the Baltimore County Police Department conducted an online operation targeting individuals sharing child pornography via the BitTorrent network. Authorities identified Kelban’s IP address as associated with a torrent containing over 2,000 files, including suspected child sexual abuse material. The IP address was linked to his registered residence. Investigators later found about 150 images and 200 videos of child sexual abuse material on his cell phone.
"This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit justice.gov/psc and click on the “Resources” tab on the left of the page."
"U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the FBI and BCPD for their work in the investigation. Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Reema Sood who prosecuted the federal case."
Information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at https://www.justice.gov/psc; resources related to internet safety are available through https://www.justice.gov/psc by selecting “Resources.” Details regarding community outreach programs from the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office are accessible at https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
