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Press Release

Carroll County Sex Offender Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison For Possession Of Child Pornography

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Maryland

Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake sentenced Scott Wade Markle, age 52, of Westminster, Maryland, today to 10 years in prison, followed by lifetime supervised release for possession of child pornography. In 2005, Markle was convicted of the same crime and was required to register as a sex offender. Judge Blake ordered that upon his release from prison, Markle must continue to register as a sex offender in the place where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge William Winter of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Colonel Marcus L. Brown, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; and Carroll County Sheriff Kenneth Tregoning.

According to Markle=s plea agreement, on February 11, 2013, an individual contacted the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office after finding a black tote bag at the bottom of his driveway. The individual had opened the bag in an attempt to identify the owner and had seen printed images of what he believed to be child pornography. Sheriff’s deputies recovered the bag which contained a student ID in Markle’s name, recent mail addressed to Markle and a folder with Markle’s name and address on the front which contained approximately 100 printed images of child pornography, including children under the age of 12 engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

A search warrant was executed the next day at Markle’s residence and law enforcement seized a digital camera, cellular telephone and two laptop computers. Markle was interviewed and advised investigators that he had printed the child pornography years ago after he was released from prison on the 2005 conviction. He used the camera to take pictures of the images and upload them to his computer, since he didn’t have internet access at his residence.

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, 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. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "resources" tab on the left of the page.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended HSI Baltimore, the Maryland State Police and the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Judson T. Mihok, who prosecuted the case.

Updated January 26, 2015