Thomas Stewart, Child Pornography, Maine 2018

PORTLAND, Maine - A Kittery man was sentenced to five years in prison for transporting images of child exploitation, Acting U.S. Attorney Donald E. Clark announced. Thomas Stewart, 32, was ordered to pay a total of $30,500 in restitution to 11 victims whose images he possessed.

Thomas Stewart, a Kittery resident, was sentenced on [no date mentioned] by Chief U.S. District Judge John D. Levy. According to court records, in September 2018, Stewart uploaded numerous images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct to a Dropbox cloud storage account he controlled.

Stewart pleaded guilty on October 30, 2019. He admitted using a Samsung tablet to access child pornography and storing hundreds of child pornography files in his Dropbox account. The Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit, the U.S. Secret Service and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigated this case.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the government to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims.

Stewart was accused of transporting images of child exploitation, which is a federal crime. He was sentenced to five years in prison followed by five years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay restitution to the victims.

The case highlights the importance of addressing child exploitation and abuse. The government is committed to protecting children from exploitation and abuse.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-me/pr/kittery-man-sentenced-transporting-child-pornography