A Union County grand jury has returned a three-count indictment against a Union Township man charged with possessing and distributing hundreds of computer files depicting Explicit Images of Minors, acting Union County Prosecutor Grace H. Park announced Thursday.
Jadir Souza, 62, is charged with second-degree distribution of Explicit Images of Minors, second-degree distribution using a file-sharing program, and third-degree possession of Explicit Images of Minors, according to Union County Assistant Prosecutor Shawn Barnes, who is prosecuting the case.
An investigation referred to the Prosecutor’s Office’s Special Prosecutions Unit by U.S. Homeland Security Investigations revealed that Souza allegedly used a peer-to-peer file-sharing program to view and distribute Explicit Images of Minors from his home computer, with the material in question constituting at least 200 video files and 400 images, Barnes said.
Souza was arrested in November 2016 and held on $100,000 bail.
Anyone with additional information about Souza’s activities still is being urged to contact Prosecutor’s Office Detective Kalebota at 908-527-4567.
Convictions on second-degree criminal offenses are commonly punishable by 5 to 10 years in state prison, while third-degree crimes typically result in terms of 3 to 5 years.