Former Delmont Resident Sentenced to 5+ Years in Prison for Possession of Child Pornography

PITTSBURGH - A former resident of Delmont, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 63 months on his conviction of possession of child pornography, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan announced today.

Chief United States District Judge Mark R. Hornak imposed the sentence on Joshua K. Minehart, 47, formerly of Delmont, Pa.

According to information presented to the court, Minehart had knowingly possessed 40 videos of child pornography, some which involved children who had not attained the age of 12.

Assistant United States Attorneys Nicole Vasquez-Schmitt and DeMarr W. Moulton prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

United States Attorney Olshan commended the Department of Homeland Security Investigations and the Pennsylvania State Police for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Minehart.

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 (CEOS), 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.