BALTIMORE — Charles Hand, 68-years-old from Aberdeen, was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison for distribution of child pornography.
“Charles Hand not only facilitated and perpetuated the abuse of children by posting—and helping others to post—child sex abuse material on an internet website dedicated to the sexual abuse of children, but he also exposed himself and engaged in lascivious behavior with at least one child victim. Hopefully, this sentence will deter others who advocate and participate in the abuse of children. I am extremely proud of the work done by dedicated and diligent agents and prosecutors that led to the prosecution and conviction of Hand, who facilitated such horrendous abuse,” said United States Attorney for the District of Maryland, Erek L. Barron.
During conversations with an undercover FBI agent he went into specifics about how he abused a child. On at least three occasions, the FBI agent downloaded some of the material Hand posted and it contained several videos of children between the ages of four and eight. Hand would also discuss his own sexual activity with the undercover agent, including why his wife divorced him.
On March 3, 2021, officers executed a search warrant at Hand's residence, seizing two computers, a digital camera and a SD card. They found more than 117,000 images and videos of child pornography on the two computers. One of the computers contained over 9,000 records concerning a victim whose real name became known to other pedophiles.
Hand also had 2,800 “stories” related to sexual activity with children, many of which were written from the perspective of a pedophile.
The judge also ordered, upon his release, he will have to register as a sex offender where he lives, where he works and where he's a student.
