Win Naing, a 20-year-old resident of Utica, New York, was charged in federal court with receipt and possession of child pornography. The charges were announced by Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III and Craig L. Tremaroli, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
According to the complaint, a cloud storage service reported uploads of child pornography to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in 2023. Investigators from the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office used geolocation data tied to an internet protocol address to connect the uploads to Naing. During a search of Naing’s cellphone, FBI special agents found numerous images and videos depicting child pornography on his device. Agents also discovered that some material had been downloaded using a social networking application installed on his phone.
The potential penalties for these charges include five to twenty years in federal prison, fines up to $250,000, supervised release ranging from at least five years up to life, and mandatory sex offender registration upon release.
Naing appeared for his initial hearing before United States Magistrate Judge Thérèse Wiley Dancks in Syracuse and was detained pending further proceedings.
Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III stated: “Collecting child pornography is not a victimless crime and the defendant in this case will now suffer the grave consequences of his despicable actions. Anyone who traffics in child pornography in the Northern District of New York should be prepared to face swift and immediate justice and can expect to spend years behind bars.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge Craig L. Tremaroli stated: “As alleged, Mr. Naing had a disturbing amount of child pornography in his possession. The FBI remains committed to relentlessly investigating these appalling predators and ensuring justice is delivered to the victims.”
Authorities emphasize that an indictment contains only accusations; defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by both the FBI and Oneida County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adrian S. LaRochelle is prosecuting as part of Project Safe Childhood—a nationwide initiative led by U.S Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), which brings together resources at multiple levels to combat online exploitation crimes against children and help identify victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at https://www.justice.gov/psc.
