Troy Eugene Anderson, Child Sex Abuse Material, Pennsylvania 2021

An Erie County man with a history of offending against children has been charged with receiving and possessing child sex abuse material.

Troy Eugene Anderson, 41, of Wattsburg, Pennsylvania, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Erie on charges of violating federal laws relating to the sexual exploitation of children, announced United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung.

The two-count indictment names Anderson as the sole defendant and alleges that in and around February 2021, he received images depicting prepubescent minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Additionally, from in and around June 2018 to in and around February 2021, Anderson possessed and accessed with intent to view visual images and videos in individual computer files depicting prepubescent minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

This case is not Anderson’s first brush with the law. He has a prior federal conviction for receipt of child sexual abuse material, for which he was sentenced to 71 months in jail and 5 years of supervised release in August 2008.

The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 60 years in prison, a fine of $500,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorney Christian A. Trabold is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Pennsylvania State Police conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case. An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.

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