Cleveland man indicted on child pornography charges

A Cleveland man was indicted on child pornography charges, said Acting U.S. Attorney David A. Sierleja.

Richard Nunez, 34, was charged with receiving, distributing and possessing visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Nunez knowingly received and distributed numerous computer files which contained visual depictions of real minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. This took place between Dec. 17, 2016, through May 26, 2017. On June 22, 2017, Nunez also possessed a laptop computer and an external hard drive, each of which contained child pornography, according to the indictment.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant's role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael A. Sullivan following an investigation by the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Cleveland office of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.