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Hartford County resident Robert Eccleston, age 58, of Canton, was sentenced to nine years behind bars Tuesday, Aug. 2 in federal court in Hartford for distributing images of child sex abuse.
It followed his guilty plea in January 2022 to one count of distributing child pornography.
Federal prosecutors said Eccleston, a Victim Services Advocate for the Hartford Superior Court, was arrested in December 2020 following an FBI investigation into various groups on the social media app Kik.
Under the usernames “hartfordctguy” and “Mowgli100,” prosecutors said Eccleston distributed numerous pornographic images and videos in the groups showing children being sexually abused.
Some of the victims were prepubescent children and toddlers, prosecutors said.
Eccleston also played administrator for two Kik groups, often requiring new members to send him videos of child sex abuse in order to be admitted to the groups, prosecutors said.
“This case is a harsh reminder that the sexual exploitation of children occurs across all segments of our community,” said US Attorney Vanessa Avery.
“Based on the position this defendant held while engaging in such reprehensible conduct, this case represents a tremendous violation of trust on multiple levels.”
In addition to his prison time, a judge ordered Eccleston to pay a total of $25,000 to four victims, plus $35,000 to the Child Pornography Victims Reserve, $5,000 to the Domestic Trafficking Victims Fund, and a $30,000 fine.
He will also have to complete 10 years of post-release supervision.
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