Somerset Man Charged with Receipt and Possession of Child Pornography
TRENTON N.J. – A Somerset man was charged with receipt and possession of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba announced.
Elliott Souder, 51, was charged by complaint and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Rukhsanah L. Singh in Trenton federal court on May 6, 2025.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From at least September 20, 2021 through November 16, 2021, Souder, via his home computer, connected to an Internet-based peer-to-peer network and requested three videos depicting child sexual abuse. When members of law enforcement executed a search warrant at Souder’s Somerset residence in March 2022, they found over 1,000 images and videos of child pornography on Souder’s computer’s hard drive, including two of the aforementioned videos previously requested over the peer-to-peer network. Some of the images and videos depicted prepubescent children, toddlers and infants, and sadomasochism on children.
The charge of receipt of child pornography carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years in prison, a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine. The charge of possession of child pornography carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Habba credited special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, specifically the Violent Crimes Against Children Unit, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Terence G. Reilly, with the investigation. This investigation was conducted under FBI’s Operation Restore Justice.
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