BOSTON (AP) — A former Massachusetts police officer was sentenced Monday to six years in prison on child pornography charges, federal prosecutors said.
Paul Hodson, 44, a former New Bedford officer, was also sentenced to five years of probation.
The Acushnet resident pleaded guilty in December 2019 to distribution of child pornography and possession of child pornography.
Hodson’s home was searched in June 2019 as part of an investigation into the use of peer-to-peer file sharing networks for the trade of child pornography, according to the U.S. attorney’s office in Boston. Hodson was interviewed at that time and admitted to using peer-to-peer file sharing software to trade child pornography, prosecutors said.
Investigators found hundreds of child pornography files stored on Hodson’s computer, including at least one file that was distributed to undercover law enforcement in the course of the investigation, prosecutors said.
Hodson resigned while the city was in the process of terminating him, police have said.
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