Nathaniel Gagne, Distributing and Possessing Child Sexual Abuse Material, Maine 2023

Augusta Man Pleads Guilty to Livestreaming Child Abuse

BANGOR, Maine:

An Augusta man has pleaded guilty to distributing and possessing child sexual abuse material, a federal crime that carries a stiff sentence.

Nathaniel Gagne, 35, of Augusta, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Bangor to distributing and possessing child sexual abuse material, a charge that carries a prison sentence of 5-20 years and a fine of up to $250,000.

The investigation into Gagne’s activities began in April 2023, when the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received a report through its CyberTipline that an Omegle user had uploaded a video file containing suspected child sexual abuse material.

Omegle is an anonymous chat site where users are matched at random within topics and can communicate by text or video. The file reported by Omegle contained four images of a three- to four-year-old child being sexually abused.

During the execution of a search warrant at his Augusta home, Gagne admitted to viewing child sexual abuse material and sharing it on Omegle. Investigators seized two cell phones and an SD card during the investigation, recovering hundreds of images and videos.

Gagne faces 5-20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000, to be followed by five years to life of supervised release on each count. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Augusta Police Department, and the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit (MSP CCU).

If you or someone you know has been a victim of child sexual abuse, you can get help by calling the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s CyberTipline at 1-800-843-5678 or by visiting https://report.cybertip.org.

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