Exeter Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for 48 Months for Possessing Over 2,000 Images of Child Sexual Abuse

CONCORD - An Exeter man was sentenced in federal court in connection with the possession of child sexual abuse materials, U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young announces.

Nathan Kohler, 41, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Laplante to 48 months in prison and 5 years of supervised release. Kohler was also ordered to pay $21,000 in restitution to the victims of his offense. On July 8, 2024, Kohler pleaded guilty to one count of Possession of Child Pornography.

"The actions of the defendant fuel the demand for the horrific sexual abuse of children and results in life-long suffering for those victims," said U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young. "Those who would seek out on the internet these images documenting the pain and abuse of a child are on notice. They will be found, prosecuted, and incarcerated."

"Kohler admitted that he had been downloading child sexual abuse material at his home for years. The children depicted in these images were victimized at the time the photos were taken and victimized again every time they are distributed. HSI works tirelessly with our partners to ensure those who trade in these horrific images are brought to justice," said HSI New England Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol.

On January 2, 2023, and again on February 14, 2023, the NH Internet Crimes Against Children ("ICAC") Task Force's BitTorrent software identified a target IP address making child sexual abuse material ("CSAM") available for download through the Peer-to-Peer ("P2P") network BitTorrent. Further investigation identified the defendant's residence in Exeter, New Hampshire as the subscriber of the target IP address.

On April 5, 2023, law enforcement executed a federal search warrant at the defendant's residence. During that search, law enforcement seized a Dell laptop computer from the defendant's bedroom, containing approximately 2,000 images of CSAM and two video files. Numerous images depicted prepubescent minors, or minors who had not attained 12 years of age as well as sadistic or masochistic conduct.

During an interview with law enforcement, the defendant admitted that he was the individual who has been using the internet in the residence to download CSAM and has been engaged in such activity for a number of years. The defendant stated that he used his laptop computer which was located in his bedroom to access CSAM.

Homeland Security Investigations led the investigation. Valuable assistance was provided by the New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Exeter Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Ward is prosecuting the case.

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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