Agents with the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General have charged a Bedford man for possessing numerous images of child pornography, according to a criminal complaint.
Authorities say Michael Bienert, 73, faces 20 felony counts of child pornography, as well as one count of felony use of a communication device, according to online court documents.
According to the arrest affidavit, the investigation into Bienert began in June of 2020 when authorities received a CyberTip that a file containing child porn had been uploaded to a Microsoft OneDrive account from an IP address in Bedford.
Investigators say the account and IP address were later determined to belong to Bienert.
Authorities say on April 5, 2022, police and agents from the AG’s office searched Bienert’s apartment and took him into custody.
Upon interviewing Bienert, he reportedly admitted to authorities that he frequently searched for pornography on his computer, including images of “nudist colonies.”
Authorities say he explained that while he did not “intentionally” search for child porn, he said that he would view “all of it.”
Investigators also noted that Bienert told authorities that he thought images of child pornography only pertained to images that included children engaged in sexual activity.
Authorities say the Bienert also admitted to saving the pornographic images to various thumb drives but stated that he had begun erasing some of the images “because of his conscious.”
The affidavit also states that Bienert asked authorities if they could “move on” from the investigation.
