October 14, 2023
NEWARK, N.J. – A Concord, New Hampshire, man pleaded guilty today in federal court in connection with the exploitation of a minor in New Jersey and possession of child sexual abuse material, U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger and U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young announced.
Scott Wilkinson, 38, pleaded guilty to one count each of production of child pornography and one count of possession of child sexual abuse material before U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Laplante in federal court in New Hampshire.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Wilkinson traveled from New Hampshire to New Jersey in April 2022, where he engaged in sexual acts with a 12-year-old child. Wilkinson had been corresponding with the child online for approximately one year prior to traveling to New Jersey to meet the child. A video that Wilkinson created of himself engaged in sexual acts with the child was found on his cell phone, as were other images and videos of child sexual abuse material.
The count of production of child pornography is punishable by a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison and a maximum of 30 years in prison. The count of possession of child pornography is punishable by a maximum of 10 years in prison, or a maximum of 20 years in prison if the court finds the defendant possessed child pornography of a child under the age of 12. He also faces up o $250,000 in fines on each count.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger and U.S. Attorney Young credited special agents of the FBI the Newark Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy; and the Egg Harbor Township Police Department with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. Valuable assistance was provided by the Concord Police Department.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey Harteis of the District of New Jersey and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kasey Weiland of the District of New Hampshire.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
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Defense counsel: Jeff Levin Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, New Hampshire
Photo by EKATERINA BOLOVTSOVA on Pexels.com
October 14, 2023
Story by: Michael Ratcliffe
EWING TOWNSHIP, NJ (MERCER)–For those who are superstitious, yesterday – Friday the 13th of October, 2023 – more than fulfilled expectations for unfortunate and unlucky happenings in Mercer County.
At the top of the list of unhappy events that occurred yesterday was a disastrous fire in Ewing that damaged both sides of a duplex, leaving 15 people homeless, and injured at least three people, including a firefighter.
A hazardous materials incident, multiple traffic accidents, more fires and other emergencies had firefighters, emergency medical personnel and police racing all other the county yesterday.
The chaos kicked off shortly about 9:10 a.m. when Hopewell Valley emergency personnel were sent to the Kooltronic Inc. facility at 30 Pennington-Hopewell Road for a hazardous materials incident reportedly involving a quantity of mercury that spilled out of a broken barometer. Trenton Fire Department’s HazMat task force was called to the scene to help contain and cleanup the spill.
At 9:31 a.m. Ewing Township fire companies were dispatched for a reported structure fire on Berwyn Avenue. A column of smoke was visible as firefighters responded. They arrived to find the second floor of one side of a duplex well-involved in fire, with flames spreading to the other side. Mutual aid was called to the scene to help battle the blaze. The fire was not declared under control until 10:28 a.m.
According to the American Red Cross and fire officials, a total of 15 people (many of these being children) were displaced from the two damaged homes – 317 and 319 Berwyn Avenue. Two residents reportedly suffered smoke inhalation and one firefighter reportedly suffered chest pains. All were cared for by Ewing and Lawrence ambulance crews and the firefighter was transported to hospital accompanied by Capital Health System paramedics. There were also reports that at least one other firefighter was evaluated on the scene by EMS.
Ewing fire units that fought the fire included Squad 30, Engine 31, Tower 31 and Engine 33. Mutual aid units on the scene included Engine 10-2 and Truck 10-1 from Hamilton, Rescue 20 and Tower 20 from Lawrence, Engine 50 from Hopewell Township, Engine 51 from Pennington Borough, and Rescue 60 from Princeton. Mercer County Fire Coordinators were on scene assisting command staff.
With so many Mercer County firefighting resources committed to Berwyn Avenue, firefighters from Burlington and Hunterdon counties were relocated into the area to provide coverage in case there was another fire reported.
After handling the HazMat incident in Hopewell, Trenton firefighters were enroute back to the city when they came upon a motor vehicle collision at Route 31 and Ingleside Avenue and stopped to render assistance.
Later in the day, Lawrence Township fire and EMS personnel were sent to the 2800 block of Brunswick Pike where a driver had lost control of her vehicle and crashed into the front wall of a strip mall.
Structure fires were also reported yesterday in the 1200 block of Nottingham Way in Hamilton, Overbrook Avenue in Trenton and Town Court North in Lawrence. Fortunately, these were all found to not be real fires and just “smoke scares” caused by cooking mishaps or steam from a clothes dryer vent being mistaken for smoke.
Around the time of the possible fire on Town Court, Lawrence police were also responding to an incident on Princeton Avenue where a woman had allegedly been threatened by a man who claimed he had a gun, although no weapon was actually seen, and Lawrence EMS personnel were responding to a reported cardiac arrest at an address on Trumbull Avenue.
Then Princeton firefighters were called up into Somerset County to help Montgomery Township fire companies handle a chimney fire on Dutchtown-Harlingen Road. And a short time later, Hopewell Valley fire companies were called out to deal with their own chimney fire at a home on Linden Lane.
Photos by: Brian McCarthy