Man gets 20 years for Internet-related crime, child porn

A Pennsylvania man has been convicted and sentenced after allegedly soliciting sexual videos from a teenager online. The 37-year-old defendant was charged with an Internet crime after allegedly posing as a teen boy in order to obtain material to make sexually explicit videos. The defendant has received a 20-year prison sentence in a federal facility, and he will remain on supervised release for a 10-year period after that. The man was formally convicted of producing child pornography. Authorities report that the defendant had pretended to be a 14-year-old boy online. By using Skype and other online services, the man allegedly coerced the 13-year-old New York girl into removing her clothing and engaging in sexual activity. Further, the man was accused of instructing the girl about particular acts he wanted her to perform. The man was watching the sex acts from his home in Pennsylvania, even though the victim was located in New York. He also reportedly asked the girl for information about her teenage friends because he wanted to contact other young women, as well. Investigators say that the parents of the New York girl complained to local police, who then referred the case to the FBI. Since the man committed the computer crime across state lines, he was charged with a federal-level offense. That is also why he will be spending time in a federal penitentiary instead of simply a state prison. Defendants in federal court may have different needs than those facing lesser offenses in a state or municipal court. It is important to remember that computer crimes are not always directly addressed in state or federal regulations. Those accused of cybercrime should know that they are not automatically considered guilty simply because they were arrested and charged. Source:  The Buffalo News, “Pennsylvania man gets 20 years for making Internet sex videos of teen girl” 25 April 2014