U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced that Maria D’Amato, a 30-year-old resident of Tonawanda, New York, has been sentenced to 108 months in prison for the receipt of child pornography. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Franz M. Wright explained that D’Amato received images and videos of child pornography from a minor female in June 2022 using her cellphone. D’Amato met the 14-year-old victim through another teenager of the same age and communicated with her via text messages and online applications like Snapchat. The two engaged in sexual acts which were recorded on either D’Amato's or the victim’s cellphone, with videos sent to D’Amato upon her request.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation under Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Miraglia and the Town of Tonawanda Police Department led by Chief James Stauffiger.