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James R. Agin admitted in February that he distributed videos and images of child pornography online using a file-sharing program.
Agin pleaded guilty to similar charges 12 years ago and received probation.
This time, he was arrested during “Operation Safety Net,” a multi-agency child protection operation led by the New Jersey Regional Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force -- the same group responsible for snagging 16 men over the past few weeks, including a Ridgewood police officer.
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SEE: A Ridgewood police officer who is accused of arranging a meeting for sex with what he thought was a 15-year-old girl was one of 16 men who were nabbed in a similar undercover sting by state and local authorities.
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As part of his plea deal, Agin must register as a sex offender under Megan’s Law and will be subject to parole supervision for life.
Deputy Attorney General Jamie Picard prosecuted Agin and handled the sentencing for the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau.
“By sending defendants like Agin to prison, we deliver the message that possessing and distributing child pornography are very serious crimes – crimes that create a market for the terrible abuse of innocent children,” state Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said.
“This prison sentence reflects our determination to prosecute these offenders aggressively using New Jersey’s tough child pornography laws,” Grewal said.
“Offenders like Agin who distribute child pornography online encourage and perpetuate the cruel sexual exploitation of children,” said Director Veronica Allende of the Division of Criminal Justice.
Agin was among 79 child predators and child pornography offenders arrested in “Operation Safety Net,” a multi-agency child protection operation that concluded in November 2017.
The operation was conducted by the New Jersey Regional ICAC Task Force, which is led by the New Jersey State Police and includes the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, all 21 county prosecutors’ offices, and several other state, county and local law enforcement agencies.
Ten alleged child predators were arrested in the operation, including eight New Jersey men and two men in California and Indiana who allegedly tried to have children transported interstate for sex.
Agin was arrested on Sept. 19, 2017, when detectives and troopers from the Division of Criminal Justice and New Jersey State Police, assisted by additional members of the ICAC Task Force, executed a search warrant at his home.
Detectives of the Division of Criminal Justice previously had downloaded more than 500 files of child pornography from a shared folder at an IP address traced to Agin.
A forensic examination of desktop and laptop seized revealed hundreds of videos and images of child pornography.
Grewal and Allende urged anyone who has information about the distribution of child pornography online – or who suspects improper contact by anyone communicating with children digitally or their possible exploitation or sexual abuse – to contact the New Jersey Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Tipline at 888-648-6007.
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