A 25-year-old man pleaded guilty in federal court on Wednesday to possessing and distributing child sexual abuse materials, according to acting U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Joshua S. Levy’s office.
Cristopher Vladimir Pineda Martinez, of East Boston, pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography and one count of distribution of child pornography. He is set to be sentenced on Aug. 14, Levy’s office said in a statement. Pineda was arrested in January 2023 and has since remained in custody.
Investigators identified Pineda as a member of several private large-scale group chats where child sexual abuse material was distributed on an online chat platform, according to the statement. On Dec. 12, 2022, Pineda sent eight videos depicting child sexual abuse to three online group chats. More than 50 additional videos depicting abuse, some involving children as young as six years old, were found in an application on Pineda’s cell phone, Levy’s office said.
Pineda faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years for both charges, and a maximum sentence of up to 40 years in prison, according to the statement.
