BUFFALO — A Lockport man has been charged with receipt of child pornography in what federal prosecutors have described as an investigation into a global sex trafficking network.
Homeland Security Investigations agents have arrested Richard Greer, 57, and charged him in a criminal complaint with receipt of child pornography. The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years.
Prosecutors in the office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of New York said Homeland Security agents have been investigating individuals who provide access to live-streaming online webcam shows involving the sexual abuse and exploitation of children to paying customers worldwide. The investigation has targeted a specific individual trafficker who operates a child sex trafficking network from a location in the Philippines.
During the investigation, agents said they identified “significant communication between the trafficker and Greer,” with the two exchanging approximately 31,000 messages, 3,099 calls, and 213 media files. During their communications, Greer reportedly received “many images and videos of child pornography” from the trafficker.
Greer pleaded not guilty to the charge during an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder, Jr. in Buffalo. He was ordered detained, pending further proceedings.