Madison County Man Pleads Guilty to Distribution and Possession of Child Pornography

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Thomas Collins, age 35, of Chittenango, New York, pled guilty yesterday to multiple counts of distribution and possession of child pornography announced United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman, Matthew Scarpino, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Buffalo Field Office, and New York State Police (NYSP) Acting Superintendent Steven A. Nigrelli.

As part of his guilty plea, Collins admitted that on several occasions in April of 2023, he distributed images and videos of child pornography to two undercover law enforcement officers via the same social networking application. Collins also admitted that on the day of his arrest, May 18, 2023, he possessed numerous images and videos of child pornography on several of his electronic devices.

Sentencing is scheduled for December 20, 2023, before United States District Judge David N. Hurd.  Collins faces a mandatory minimum term of 5 years in prison, a maximum term of 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release of between 5 years and up to life.  Collins will also be required to register as a sex offender.  A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.

The case is being investigated by HSI, the NYSP Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and the NYSP Troop D Computer Crime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adrian LaRochelle prosecuted the case as a part of Project Safe Childhood.

Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorney’s 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 https://www.justice.gov/psc.