Mark Derzko, Child Pornography Distribution, New Jersey 2016

A 74-year-old man from Morris County, New Jersey, has been sentenced to 97 months in prison for distributing images of child sexual abuse.

Mark Derzko, of Mine Hill, New Jersey, pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of child pornography. He was sentenced to 97 months in prison by U.S. District Judge William H. Walls in Newark federal court.

According to court documents, Derzko used a peer-to-peer file-sharing program to download videos and images of child sexual abuse. In 2016, law enforcement downloaded over two dozen videos from Derzko’s computer. A search warrant executed at his home in October 2016 found over 2,000 videos and 8,000 images of child sexual abuse on his computers.

Derzko admitted to making the videos available for others to download. In addition to his prison sentence, he was ordered to serve five years of supervised release, register as a sex offender, and pay restitution of $24,000.

The investigation into Derzko’s activities was led by special agents with the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Newark Special Agent in Charge Brian Michael. The Morris County Prosecutor’s Office and the Wharton, New Jersey, Police Department also assisted with the case.

Derzko’s defense counsel is Michael Koribanics Esq. of Clifton, New Jersey. The government is represented by Senior Litigation Counsel Mark J. McCarren of the U.S. Attorney’s Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.

U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito praised the work of the law enforcement agencies involved in the case and thanked them for their assistance.

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