Lewis County man sentenced to 30 years in prison for sexually exploiting two children | Lewis County News

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, as part of his guilty plea, Hotchkiss admitted to sexually exploiting two children under the age of five and live-streaming or distributing online depictions of sexual abuse in exchange for money from at least October 2021 through August 2022.

When Hotchkiss was arrested in August 2022, prosecutors said he also possessed a collection of child pornography that he obtained online or by exchanging messages with others on social media.

In addition to the prison and probation conditions, Hotchkiss was ordered to pay a total of $18,000 in restitution to his victims and to surrender the electronic devices he used to commit the crimes. Hotchkiss must also register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.

Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case with assistance from the State Police and the Lewis County District Attorney’s Office as part of Project Safe Childhood. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael D. Gadarian prosecuted.