Blawnox man sentenced to 5 years on child porn charge

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - A Blawnox man who federal prosecutors said had over 10,000 images and videos of child porn will spend five years in prison. 

A judge sentenced Michael Marlette to 60 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release on his conviction of possessing material depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor. 

Prosecutors said Homeland Security investigators and the Blawnox Police Department raided Marlette's home in 2018 and found over 9,700 images and nearly 300 videos of child porn. 

Before imposing the sentence, the judge cited the seriousness of the offense and the number of victims in what prosecutors called Marlette's "collection." 

Marlette's case was part of Project Safe Childhood, a Department of Justice initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.