Jamestown Man Pleads Guilty To Child Porngraphy Charge

BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Matthew Bailer, 34, of Jamestown, NY, pleaded guilty before Chief U.S. District judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr. to receipt and possession of child pornography. The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum of life, and a $250,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth R. Moellering, who is handling the case, stated that on July 11, 2018, the Jamestown Police Department received a complaint from a parent that her minor children, Victim 1 and Victim 2, may have been sexually abused by the defendant. The parent stated that she was told by the defendant’s sister that a series of concerning pictures, sexual in nature, were sent on a Nokia cellular telephone that was used by the defendant.

Bailer was subsequently arrested on a warrant out of Missouri related to a burglary case. During a search of the Nokia cellular telephone, investigators recovered several hundred images of images of child pornography involving sexually explicit conduct by prepubescent and pubescent children.

The plea is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Gary Loeffert, and the Jamestown Police Department, under the direction of Chief Harry Snellings.

Sentencing is scheduled for February 20, 2020, at 3:00 p.m. before Judge Geraci.