Sault senior sentenced to 30 months in jail in child porn case
A 71-year-old man from Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., found guilty of having and making available child pornography to others, has been sentenced to 30 months in prison.
Kenneth Newell represented himself in a trial that took four days over several months earlier this year.
Justice Romuald Kwolek found him guilty in June and released the reasons for sentencing Sept. 13.
More than 4,300 files containing online child sexual abuse material were found by detectives connected to Kenneth Newell's IP address in 2020, court documents obtained by CTV News said.
Police underwent a four-month investigation from September 2020 to January 2021 which resulted in the search of Newell's apartment on Jan. 27, 2021.
Officers seized 13 devices found in his living room and five of them had either accessible or inaccessible online child sexual abuse material files.
"Many of these images had hashtags for child pornography … and involved scantily clad girls in sexually provocative poses 6-12 years of age," a court document about the case said.
"The majority of those files had names associated to common child pornography terms such as PTHC (pre-teen hardcore) 11yo, 7 yo."
While many of the files found on Newell's devices had been deleted, many were accessible with links to child pornographic materials.
"The child pornography files on the various devices were accessed on multiple occasions over a number of years," the court document said.
"In this case, the forensic analyst found 192 accessible and 7,294 inaccessible child pornography images and 52 accessible and 275 inaccessible child pornography videos on the devices seized.
During the trial, Newell maintained the child pornography was "not intentionally downloaded."
- Download the CTV News app now and get local alerts on your device
- Get local breaking news and updates sent to your email inbox
- Want more local news? Check out the Sault Ste. Marie page
Taking his age, mental and physical health issues and his lack of a criminal record into consideration, the judge reduced the sentence from three years to two and a half for making child pornography available.
A second 24-month sentence will be served concurrently for the possession of child pornography charge.
Due to Newell's limited income, he will not have to pay a victim surcharge.
He is ordered to forfeit all devices where the child sexual abuse material was found, submit a DNA sample and will be listed on the national sex offender registry.
RESOURCES FOR FAMILIES
There are many organizations in Canada working to fight online child sexual exploitation. Find resources here.
These are some signs that a child is maybe being targeted:
- Talks about a new friend you haven't heard of before
- Are very focused on spending more time online
- Have new things you didn't get them (e.g. gifts, devices, video games, new apps or video game upgrades)
- Are more secretive than usual when you are around
- Uses sexual language they haven't before
- Are more fragile, moody or troubled than usual (even for a teenager)
- Isolates themselves in certain locations in the home more than they would normally (e.g. the bedroom or the bathroom)
- Complains of stomach aches, headaches and trouble sleeping
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'I have the will to live': N.B. woman needs double lung transplant
A New Brunswick woman suffering from sarcoidosis, a disease that limits your lung capacity, is in need of a double lung transplant.
Suter scores late goal, clinches series for Canucks
Pius Suter scored with 1:39 left and the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs with a 1-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Friday night in Game 6.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Video shows suspect setting Toronto-area barbershop on fire
Video of a suspect lighting a Richmond Hill barbershop on fire earlier this week has been released by police.
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
The kids from 'Mrs. Doubtfire are all SUPER grown up now, and we're not OK
The adorable trio of child actors from the 1993 classic comedy 'Mrs. Doubtfire,' which starred the late and great Robin Williams, are all grown up and looking back on their seminal time together.
Britney Spears 'home and safe' after paramedics responded to an incident at the Chateau Marmont, source tells CNN
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
Premier Legault reiterates that McGill pro-Palestinian camp must be dismantled
Quebec Premier François Legault reiterated that the pro-Palestinian encampment at McGill University must be dismantled while police remain 'on the lookout for new developments.'
Hulk Hogan, hurricanes and a blockbuster recording: A week in review of the Trump hush money trial
Crucial witnesses took the stand in the second week of testimony in Donald Trump's hush money trial, including a California lawyer who negotiated deals at the center of the case and a longtime adviser to the former president.