Michigan man sentenced to 7 years on child pornography charges

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A Michigan man was sentenced to seven years in federal prison Tuesday on charges of receiving child pornography. The sentence follows an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

According to court documents, Stephen Cutter, 28, of Grand Rapids, Mich., was identified by HSI special agents during an undercover online investigation into a known computer network where images of child pornography are traded.

In April 2011, an undercover special agent located in Michigan downloaded files depicting child pornography that Cutter had made available to network members. During a May 2011 search warrant executed at Cutter's home, special agents discovered hundreds of images of child pornography on media storage devices in his possession.

"While this significant sentence cannot restore the lost innocence of the children depicted in these images, it should serve as a warning to those who engage in this behavior — HSI and our partners will be relentless in our pursuit of online predators," said Brian M. Moskowitz special agent in charge for HSI Michigan and Ohio.

This investigation was part of Operation Predator, a nationwide HSI initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel overseas for sex with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders, and child sex traffickers. HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators.

Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, at 1-800-843-5678 or http://www.cybertipline.com.