North Branford Man Who Downloaded Child Sex Abuse Videos from Dark Web Sentenced to 7 Years in Federal Prison

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that JOSEPH AMADEO, 39, of North Branford, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 84 months of imprisonment, followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for downloading child sex abuse images and videos from the dark web.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in 2020, HSI began investigating Amadeo for his involvement in an online community of individuals who sent and received child pornography images and videos on the dark web.  Amadeo was a registered sex offender on the Connecticut Sex Offender Registry based on a 2013 state conviction involving child pornography.

On March 24, 2021, investigators conducted a court-authorized search of Amadeo’s residence and seized Amadeo’s computer and other electronic devices.  Analysis of the devices revealed thousands of images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children, many as young as infants.

Amadeo was arrested on June 3, 2021.  On April 19, 2023, he pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography.

Amadeo, who is released on a $100,000 bond, is required to report to prison on February 2.

This matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amanda Oakes and Shan Patel.

This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

To report cases of child exploitation, please visit www.cybertipline.com.