Rye Neck High School teacher facing child pornography charges

SOMERS, New York (WABC) -- A Westchester County teacher is under arrest and facing child pornography charges after authorities say he downloaded hundreds of illicit photos and videos since 2012.

U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said investigators discovered Nicholas Pagliuca was a teacher at Rye Neck High School in Mamaroneck after tracking an email address he used to register with a child pornography website.

The 65-year-old Somers resident is charged with one count of possession of child pornography, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of receipt of child pornography, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. He has worked at the school as a science teacher for more than two decades.

"As alleged, Nicholas Pagliuca, a teacher at a local high school, tapped into a website full of illegal child pornography to download images and videos," Bharara said. "Investigation and prosecution of these crimes are critical in protecting our children."

According to the criminal complaint, Pagliuca registered for a 30-day subscription to an offshore website that is a popular means for individuals to trade child pornography images and videos in October of 2012. He allegedly downloaded hundreds of files containing images and videos of child pornography, many of which depicted prepubescent children engaged in sexual activity with adults or other children.

Pagliuca is free on bail, with conditions that he not teach or be around children unsupervised.

Any individuals who believe they have information concerning Pagliuca that may be relevant to the investigation should contact HSI at through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2ICE; TTY for hearing impaired: (802) 872-6196. This hotline is staffed around-the-clock by investigators.