Matthew Kielecki, 45, of Rutland, Vermont, was sentenced on November 6, 2026, to 89 months in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Vermont says Chief United States District Judge Christina Reiss handed down the sentence. Kielecki pleaded guilty on July 7, 2026, to distribution and possession of child sexual abuse material.

According to court records cited by the office, Kielecki uploaded 23 files containing the material to a social media messaging platform in March 2025. The files depicted the sexual assaults of children ranging in age from younger than 8 years old to younger than 12 years old. Prosecutors say he also communicated with other users of the platform who were interested in such material.

When law enforcement searched Kielecki's home in September 2025, the office says, they recovered psilocybin mushrooms, 30 marijuana plants in various stages of growth and 20 firearms, two of them loaded. Investigators also found additional abuse material on his cellphone depicting a prepubescent female child, according to the office.

First Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan A. Ophardt credited Homeland Security Investigations, the Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Rutland City Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Drug Enforcement Administration with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Corinne Smith prosecuted the case. Assistant Federal Public Defender Sam Ansell represented Kielecki.

The office says the case was brought under Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative the Justice Department launched in May 2006 to find and prosecute people who exploit children over the internet and to identify and rescue victims.