LUZERNE COUNTY CHILD PORNOGRAPHY TRAFFICKER SENTENCED TO 151 MONTHS IN PRISON

Martin C. Carlson, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, announced that a 32-year old Dallas resident was sentenced today by U.S. District Court Judge William J. Nealon to serve 151 months in federal prison for receiving child pornography.

Carlson stated that Stephen Miknevich pleaded guilty to the offense on December 8, 2008.
Miknevich’s prosecution stemmed from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Pennsylvania State Police, the Delaware County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and the Delaware State Police.

Carlson noted that in imposing the sentence, Judge Nealon noted the extreme and disgusting nature of the child pornography collected by the defendant, the large volume of images involved in the offense (more than 7,000 images), the fact that Miknevich shared and distributed child pornography to others, and the additional harm done to the young victims by further dissemination of the videos and images depicting their sexual abuse.

Judge Nealon also ordered Miknevich to be placed on supervised release for 10 years after serving his prison sentence. Miknevich was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment.

Carlson noted that this case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by 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 better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Carlson noted that the case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis P. Sempa.

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