‘The youngest [they] hve': Mass. man arrested for distributing child porn showing kids as young as 4
An Ashland man has been arrested and charged with transportation of child sexual abuse material, with the alleged images depicting children as young as 4, the U.S. Attorney said Thursday.
Brent Vreeland, 36, was arrested and charged Wednesday with one count of transportation of child pornography, U.S Attorney Leah Foley said in a statement.
Following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston, Vreeland was ordered detained pending a hearing scheduled for later Thursday.
According to the charging documents, Vreeland was flagged for secondary screening at Boston's Logan International Airport upon arrival from Reykjavik, Iceland in October.
Prosecutors allege that during a review of Vreeland's cell phone, images and videos depicting child pornography were found in his Telegram Messenger app.
A subsequent forensic examination of the device allegedly revealed approximately 30 media files depicting CSAM in direct messages with other unknown Telegram users, Foley said.
Prosecutors allege that Vreeland received and distributed three such videos in October 2021, depicting the abuse of minor victims between the ages of four and 10 years old.
In one exchange, Vreeland allegedly asked another user to trade CSAM files for 'the youngest [they] hve [sic],' prosecutors said.
If convicted of the charge of transportation of child pornography, Vreeland faces a sentence of at least five years and up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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