A Lackawanna man has been sentenced to five years in prison for distributing child pornography, according to an announcement from U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo. Maxwell H. Gawley, 34, received a 60-month sentence from U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra, Jr.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Evan K. Glaberson stated that in August 2022, Gawley engaged in sexually explicit conversations via Snapchat with a minor victim, who was a 14-year-old male. During these conversations, Gawley asked the minor victim to send him pictures of himself and discussed having sexual contact with him, which the minor victim complied with. In response, Gawley told the minor victim that he “might even have to make a road trip … [come] see you if we were dating.” In September 2022, Gawley engaged in a sexually explicit conversation with another individual over Snapchat, during which Gawley shared images and videos of child pornography over the internet via Snapchat.
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations led by Special Agent-in-Charge Erin Keegan; New York State Police under Major Amie Feroleto; and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
