Meriden Man, 64, Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charge: U.S. Attorney

MERIDEN, CT — A 64-year-old Meriden man pleaded guilty on Wednesday, Aug. 31, to one count of Production of Child Pornography after engaging in sex acts with two boys under the age of 18 and filming it, according to United States Attorney Deirdre M. Daly.

On multiple occasions between 2012 and August 2015, Mark W. Irwin "engaged in sexual acts with two males who were under the age of 18," according to Daly's statement. "[He] installed and operated a video camera and a digital video recording device at his residence to record the sexual activity."

On Sept. 8 of last year, law enforcement officers raided Irwin's home and "seized several computers, hard drives, electronic storage media and the digital video recording device." He was arrested 10 days later and has been detained ever since.

Irwin is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill on Nov. 23, at which time Irwin faces a mandatory minimum prison term of 15 years. The maximum term of imprisonment is 30 years and a fine of up to $250,000.

Irwin was also charged with related state offenses.

The case is being investigated by the Meriden Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations and Connecticut State Police, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Neeraj N. Patel.

This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc.

To report cases of child exploitation, visit www.cybertipline.com.

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