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QUEENS---A New York State Department of Transportation (DOT) engineer has been charged with possessing images of underage child sexual activity on a government computer that he used at a DOT field office in Bayside, Queens.
Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said that Vinod G. Patel, 37, of East Meadow, Long Island, is accused of possessing nearly a dozen files that depict sexual acts between adults and young children -including one less than six years of age - on his office computer.
"This case should serve as a clear and unmistakable warning that law enforcement is prepared to apprehend and prosecute sexual predators who betray and defile youngsters", Brown said.
Patel's duties at DOT involved the general administration of contracts for construction projects. He was arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on 11 counts of possessing a sexual performance by a child. If convicted, he faces up to four years in prison.
Prosecutors said that on March 2, a DOT employee discovered child pornography on a computer used by Patel at the DOT field office at 219-03 Northern Boulevard in Bayside and alerted authorities. The photo allegedly depicted the child in a sexual act with an adult male.
A search warrant was signed by Acting Queens Supreme Court Justice Pauline Mullings on March 3 to allow authorities to examine the computer. It is alleged in the complaint that 10 files depicting young children less than 15 years of age engaging in sexual acts had been placed in a folder marked "VPS" on the computer between Sept. 12, 2005 and March 2 when the defendant was working at the office. An 11th file allegedly contained images of a video file depicting a child less than six years of age engaged in sexual intercourse with an adult male. 4-25-06
© 2006 North
Country Gazette
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