Orleans Man Pleads Guilty To Child Porn Possession; Sentencing Scheduled For February

ORLEANS – An Orleans man pleaded guilty last week in federal court to charges of possessing child pornography. 

 Anthony Argo, 34, appeared in U.S. District Court in Boston Nov. 19, where he pleaded guilty to possession of child sexual abuse material, according to a statement from the office of Joshua Levy, acting U.S. attorney for the District of Massachusetts. Argo’s sentencing has been scheduled for Feb. 25.

 Argo was arrested and charged in July after he was found to have used a “chat application” through which he expressed “sexual interest in minors” and shared the alleged abusive material, according to the statement. 

 A search of Argo’s residence uncovered “an SD card and multiple USB drives” that together had more than 600 images of child pornography, including some of infants, Levy’s office said.

 The case against Argo was brought by Project Safe Childhood, which utilizes local, state and federal resources to identify and prosecute cases of child sexual abuse and exploitation nationwide.

 Argo was previously convicted on a charge of indecent assault and battery on a person 14 or over in Barnstable District Court, as well as additional charges in Orleans District Court of kidnapping, enticement of a child under 16 and distributing obscene matter to a minor, according to the statement. 

Because of his prior convictions, the possession charge against Argo could result in a sentence of anywhere from 10 to 20 years in prison, at least five years or as much as a lifetime of supervised release and a maximum fine of $250,000.