WARETOWN – A Waretown man has been sent to state prison for four years after police found him in possession of over 1,000 images of child pornography.
In January of 2019, the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office High Tech Crime Unit conducted an investigation that revealed an IP Address belonging to Michael Delia, 42, of Waretown, which was being used to download child pornography. Delia had been downloading child pornography from the internet through a peer-to-peer file sharing application.
A search warrant was then performed at Delia’s residence in Waretown on March 5, 2019 by Detectives from the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office High Tech Crime Unit, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations, and Ocean Township Police Department. During the search warrant, detectives seized Delia’s laptop computer, cell phone and other electronic equipment.
After a forensic examination of the laptop computer, detectives found it contained more than 1,000 but less than 10,000 images of child pornography. As a result, Delia was arrested without incident and transported to the Ocean County Jail.
On March 19, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that Delia was sentenced to four years in New Jersey State Prison as a result of his previously entered guilty plea to Endangering the Welfare of a Child by Possessing Child Pornography, which he pled guilty on September 23, 2020.
Delia’s sentence will be served at the Adult Diagnostic and Treatment Center located in Avenel, New Jersey. Delia will also be subject to Parole Supervision for Life and will be required to register as a Megan’s Law Offender.
Prosecutor Billhimer commends the diligence of Assistant Prosecutor Shanon Chant-Berry who handled the case on behalf of the State, as well as the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office High Tech Crime Unit, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations, and Ocean Township Police Department, for their collective and combined assistance in this investigation leading to Delia’s apprehension, and ultimately his state prison sentence.
