BURLINGTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont stated that on November 6, 2026, Matthew Kielecki, 45, of Rutland, Vermont, was sentenced by Chief United States District Judge Christina Reiss to a term of 89 months’ imprisonment to be followed by a 10-year term of supervised release. Kielecki previously pleaded guilty to distribution and possession of child sexual abuse material (“CSAM”) on July 7, 2026.According to court records, in March of 2025, Kielecki uploaded to a social media messaging platform 23 files containing CSAM. The CSAM depicted the sexual assaults of children ranging in age from younger than 8 years old to younger than 12 years old. Kielecki also communicated with other social media users interested in CSAM, in one case, suggesting that he had produced CSAM over the internet with a 12-year-old girl, and in other, encouraging another person to view CSAM over that person’s stated reluctance.When law enforcement executed a search warrant at Kielecki’s home in September 2025, they recovered psilocybin mushrooms, 30 marijuana plants in various stages of growth, and 20 firearms, two of which were loaded. Evidence from Kielecki’s phone suggested that he was engaged in distributing marijuana in violation of both federal and state law. Law enforcement also discovered on Kielecki’s cellphone additional CSAM depicting a prepubescent female child.First Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan A. Ophardt commended the collaborative investigatory efforts of Homeland Security Investigations, the Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Rutland City Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Corinne Smith. Kielecki was represented by Assistant Federal Public Defender Sam Ansell.This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit Justice.gov/PSC.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice