Stamford Man Charged With Possession Of Child Pornography: Police

STAMFORD, CT — After a nine month internet sex crimes investigation, a Stamford man was arrested earlier this week, according to the Stamford Police Department.

Ralph Conte, 54, was charged with first-degree possession of child pornography and given a $750,000 bond, police said.

"Due to the large amount of images and files that have to be extracted there will be supplemental charges forthcoming," said Capt. Diedrich Hohn of the SPD in an announcement on Facebook.

Hohn said an investigation into Conte began in May 2021 when the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force alerted SPD investigator and ICAC Task Force member, Brian Donahue, that there were a large number of child pornography downloads going to a residence in Stamford.

Donahue's investigation showed that there were "hundreds of downloads of child pornography" being downloaded to a residence in the Waterside section of Stamford, Hohn said.

On March 1, investigators executed a search warrant at that location. Conte was detained and then arrested after police conducted an on scene preview of materials, police said, noting that numerous laptops, phones and thumb drives belonging to Conte were seized.

"With the assistance of ICAC investigator, and Darien PD Sgt. Mauricio Vigil, an on scene preview was conducted which confirmed the presence of a large amount of child pornography pictures and videos," Hohn said.

"We would like to acknowledge SPD Investigator Donahue and Olivia for their diligent work on this sensitive investigation. Darien PD (Sgt. Vigil) and GA-1 States Attorneys Cummings and Moran, should be recognized for their assistance and guidance with this vexing investigation," Hohn added.