Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal announced that a Middlesex County man who possessed approximately 735 videos of explicit images of minors on his computer was sentenced to state prison today for distributing explicit images of minors on the internet. He was arrested last year in “Operation Safeguard,” a explicit images of minors sweep conducted by the Division of Criminal Justice, ICE Homeland Security Investigations and the New Jersey State Police.
According to authorities, Matthew Dieterman, 33, of Piscataway, was sentenced today to five years in state prison, including 2 ½ years of parole ineligibility, by Superior Court Judge Benjamin S. Bucca Jr. in Middlesex County. Dieterman pleaded guilty on Aug. 25, 2017, to a second-degree charge of distribution of explicit images of minors (knowingly storing or maintaining explicit images of minors in a file-sharing program).
Authorities said he will be required to register as a sex offender under Megan’s Law and will be subject to parole supervision for life. In pleading guilty, Dieterman admitted that he knowingly used file-sharing software to make multiple files containing explicit images of minors readily available for any other user to download from a designated “shared folder” on his computer.
“The hundreds of videos of explicit images of minors found on Dieterman’s computer represent hundreds of young lives ripped apart by sexual abuse and exploitation,” said Attorney General Grewal. “Offenders like Dieterman who distribute these abhorrent materials contribute directly to that abuse and belong in prison.”
“We’ll continue to monitor file-sharing networks vigilantly and conduct sweeps like Operation Safeguard to arrest these offenders and protect children,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “We’re putting criminals like Dieterman on notice that their internet activities are being conducted under the watchful eye of law enforcement.”
“Dieterman preyed on the most vulnerable and innocent victims to satisfy his sadistically depraved desires by compiling and distributing more than 700 hundred images of explicit images of minors,” said Colonel Patrick Callahan, Acting Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. “The New Jersey State Police and our law enforcement partners remain committed to protecting our children from the predators who circulate this filth on the internet.”
Police arrested Dieterman on March 4, 2016, when agents and detectives conducting Operation Safeguard executed a search warrant at his residence. A detective of ICE Homeland Security Investigations previously had downloaded 37 videos and images of explicit images of minors from a shared folder at an IP address traced to Dieterman.
During the search, detectives seized a computer belonging to Dieterman that a preview revealed contained numerous files of explicit images of minors. The Piscataway Police Department assisted in the operation.
A full forensic examination of the computer by HSI revealed a total of 735 videos of explicit images of minors and nine additional images of explicit images of minors.