Roland Yockel II, Receipt of Child Pornography, NY 2024

Former kindergarten teacher Roland Yockel II, 31, of Hilton, NY, pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography, a charge carrying a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 20 years in federal prison, plus a $250,000 fine. The plea was entered before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford in Buffalo, marking the end of a sprawling international investigation.

According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle P. Rossi, the case began unfolding in July 2017 when Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) Special Agents in Phoenix linked Yockel to an active child pornography probe involving law enforcement in New Zealand. Investigators uncovered a network of predators using Chatstep.com, an internet-based chat application, to trade graphic material involving minors.

On May 22 and July 24, 2017, undercover New Zealand agents observed a user identified as “Ryancba” sharing links to image files depicting pre-pubescent children in sexually explicit content. Forensic tracing tied the IP address directly to Roland Yockel, then a teacher in the Brockport Central School District. The material he posted and accessed was not just illicit—it was deeply disturbing, investigators say.

A search warrant executed November 21, 2017, at Yockel’s North Avenue residence in Hilton uncovered a stash of digital evidence. Agents seized DVDs and digital media containing approximately 5,500 images and 247 videos of child pornography. The basement dwelling, shared with his parents and siblings, became a crime scene frozen in digital depravity.

The investigation was led by Homeland Security Investigations, under Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly, with critical support from the New York State Police, directed by Major Richard Allen. International cooperation with New Zealand authorities proved pivotal in cracking the Chatstep network and identifying American participants like Yockel.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 14, 2018, at 3:00 p.m. before Judge Wolford. Yockel, once trusted to educate the youngest students in Brockport, now faces the full weight of federal justice—and a lifetime labeled a sex offender.