Former Mt. Pleasant police chief to be sentenced for child porn possession

MOUNT PLEASANT, New York (WABC) -- A former police chief in Westchester County is scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday on child pornography charges.

Ex-Mount Pleasant chief Brian Fanelli, arrested in January 2014, pleaded guilty last July to one count of possession of child porn.

Authorities say Fanelli downloaded more than 120 files containing images and videos believed to be child pornography on three computers seized from his Putnam County home.

Fanelli admitted to investigators that he initially viewed the pornography as research for the sexual abuse awareness classes he taught to elementary and middle school students.

But he acknowledged that his research ultimately became his personal interest.

Fanelli, 56, faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.