Hampton Man Pleads Guilty to Distribution of Child Pornography

             CONCORD - John William McMahon, 30, of Hampton, pleaded guilty in federal court to distribution of child pornography, United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced today.

            According to court documents and statements made in court, during an ongoing undercover investigation, a member of the New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force accessed a peer-to-peer network to identify users who may be sharing images of child pornography. On various dates between December 14, 2017, and January 2, 2018, law enforcement  officers conducted single-source downloads of child pornography from a certain I.P. address. Agents identified the address used to distribute child pornography images during the undercover sessions.

           Through their investigation, agents identified the defendant, John William McMahon, as the person responsible for distributing child pornography images during the undercover sessions. In a consensual interview, the defendant admitted accessing wireless internet belonging to a neighboring apartment, and he further admitted downloading child pornography. Investigators later obtained a search warrant for McMahon’s laptop and other electronic media recovered from him. Subsequent forensic examination revealed approximately 1,410 images of suspected child pornography on McMahon’s laptop. The child pornography images and videos were sent to the National Center for Mission and Exploited Children (NCMEC), which confirmed that 500 still images and 6 videos were of identified child victims.

            McMahon’s sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.  

           “Child pornography crimes involve the distribution of images of children who have been the victims of terrible abuse,” said U.S. Attorney Murray.  “Those who distribute these images are committing a serious federal crime and will be prosecuted aggressively.  I am grateful for the efforts of the law enforcement officers whose dedicated work led to this successful prosecution.”

          ​ “Every conviction of an individual who distributes child pornography is a victory in our fight against the sharing of these sickening images,” said Michael Shea, acting Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Boston. “We applaud the tireless work of our partners in the New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the U.S. Attorney for New Hampshire for their commitment to fighting for justice for the victims of these disturbing crimes.”

            This matter was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cam Le.

            In February 2006, the Department of Justice introduced Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.