A federal grand jury has indicted a Sioux Falls man for two counts of Transportation of Child Pornography.
44 year old Matthew Richard Hainje pleaded not guilty.
The Indictment alleges that on December 20, 2022, and again between December 22, 2022, and January 13, 2023, Hainje knowingly transported child pornography. It is alleged that Hainje uploaded graphic images and video files depicting one or more minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct into his Dropbox and Google accounts.
The charges are merely accusations and Hainje is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Sioux Falls Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey C. Clapper 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.
Hainje was remanded to the custody of the State pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
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