Waterloo Man Pleads Guilty in Child Pornography Case

          ROCHESTER, N.Y.--U.S. Attorney William, J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Ronald Beaton, 68, of Waterloo, N.Y., pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography before U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany H. Lee, who is handling the case, stated that Special Agents with Homeland Security Investigations conducted an undercover investigation and discovered that a user of an Internet Protocol address was sharing child pornography files using file-sharing software. The Internet Protocol address was assigned to the defendant and his residence on West Main Street in Waterloo. A search warrant was executed and agents found video files depicting child pornography on the defendant’s computer.

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.

The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part Special Agents from BeatoImmigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge, James C. Spero.