TRENTON - Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal announced that a Burlington County man was indicted today on charges that he allegedly had over one thousand files of child pornography on his computer, including child pornography that he manufactured, and that he allegedly used file-sharing software to distribute child pornography on the internet.
Gregory Van Sciver, 62, of Lumberton, N.J., was indicted today by a state grand jury on the following charges:
- Distribution of 25 or More Items of Child Pornography (2nd degree),
- Storing or Maintaining 25 or More Items of Child Pornography Using a File-Sharing Program (2nd degree),
- Possession of 1,000 or More Items of Child Pornography (2nd degree),
- Manufacturing Child Pornography (2nd degree), and
The charges stem from an investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Newark. A special agent of HSI was investigating the distribution of child pornography on a file-sharing network popular with sex offenders when he downloaded over 300 files of child pornography from a shared folder at an IP address that was subsequently traced to Van Sciver. Van Sciver was arrested on April 3, 2018, when detectives of the Division of Criminal Justice and special agents of HSI, assisted by officers of the Lumberton Police Department, executed a search warrant at his residence. A full forensic examination of Van Sciver’s computer allegedly revealed over 1,000 files of child pornography, including child pornography Van Sciver manufactured.
Deputy Attorneys General Brian Faulk and Thomas Huynh presented the case to the state grand jury for the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau, under the supervision of Bureau Chief Julia S. Glass and Deputy Bureau Chief Jillian Carpenter. Attorney General Grewal commended the detectives, special agents, and officers who conducted the investigation for the Division of Criminal Justice, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, and the Lumberton Police Department.
Second-degree charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $150,000. The charges of distributing – or storing or maintaining using a file-sharing program – more than 25 items of child pornography carry a mandatory minimum term of five years of parole ineligibility. The indictment is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The indictment was handed up to Superior Court Judge Peter E. Warshaw Jr. in Mercer County, who assigned the case to Burlington County, where Van Sciver will be ordered to appear in court at a later date for arraignment.
Attorney General Grewal and Director Allende urged anyone with information about the distribution of child pornography on the internet – or about suspected improper contact by unknown persons communicating with children via the internet or possible exploitation or sexual abuse of children – to contact the New Jersey Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Tipline at 888-648-6007.
Defense Attorney:
Assistant Deputy Public Defender Bonnie Geller-Gorman, Burlington County, N.J.
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