Tolland's "Peanut Butter Bandit" Back Behind Bars After Child Porn Found on Computer

Tolland’s “Peanut Butter Bandit” Frederick Merrill, 68, is back behind bars after more than 300 pictures depicting child porngoraphy were found on a computer in his possession.

Merrill was on parole after being convicted of rape, according to the Hartford Courant.

He pleaded guilty Friday to first-degree possession of child porngraphy and failure to register as a sex offender. He will serve the remainder of his current sentence which runs through next year and was sentenced to an additional eight years for the new charges.

After that he will be on special parole for ten years if he is still alive at the end of his prison term.

The computer was discovered at Merrill’s sister’s property in Tolland. It had been stolen from a University of Connecticut student and Merrill bought it at a pawn shop.

The children in the images were between three and 12-years-old, according to the Courant.

Merrill was dubbed the “Peanut Butter Bandit” after his mother brought him a container of peanut butter while he was incarcerated that contained a gun, money and handcuff key. He used it to escape custody during transport, but was apprehended at a police roadblock.

Read the full Courant story about Merrill’s long criminal history.

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