An indictment was unsealed in U.S. District Court on Apr. 2 charging Michael Wolf, 64, of Chicago, Illinois, with distribution of child pornography, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
The case highlights ongoing efforts to address the exploitation and abuse of children online. According to court documents, Wolf used the Telegram messaging application to communicate about his sexual interest in children and distributed ten videos depicting child sexual abuse during those conversations.
Wolf also told another Telegram user that he was communicating with minors through an online dating application and forwarded sexually explicit images he claimed depicted those minors. He later sent photos of himself that law enforcement used to identify him.
The investigation is being led by the FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force in Washington, D.C., with support from the FBI Chicago Field Office and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois. Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel Bohlen is prosecuting the case.
This prosecution falls under Project Safe Childhood, a Department of Justice initiative created in February 2006 aimed at protecting children from online exploitation and abuse by coordinating federal, state, and local resources.
Authorities remind the public that charges contained in an indictment are allegations only; every defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
