MD Man Gets 18 Years In Prison After Storing Child Sex Abuse Images On Google Drive

ANNAPOLIS, MD — A 36-year-old Annapolis man was sentenced to nearly two decades in prison on Wednesday for possessing child sex abuse material.

A release issued by the Office of the State's Attorney states that Matthew James Freeto was sentenced to 80 years in prison, with all but 18 years suspended after he pleaded guilty to eight counts of possessing child sex abuse material.

"This defendant was on probation for possession of child pornography and clearly didn’t get the message the first time," State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess said in a statement.

"Today’s sentence from the Court acknowledges he needed a lengthy prison term to address his disturbing penchant for child sexual abuse material. Following his release, he’ll have decades of additional time hanging over his head if he reoffends."

Authorities with the Anne Arundel County Police Department first became aware of Freeto on July 18, 2025, when the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children alerted investigators to a Google report.

The tech giant had reported numerous child sex abuse images that it flagged when they were stored in a Google Drive and Photo folder.

Officials said Google was able to provide Freeto's mobile phone numbers, Gmail address and date of birth to tie him to the images. A search warrant obtained for his Google account confirmed the images, according to the release.

In addition to the prison term, Freeto will be required to register as a Tier 2 sex offender for 25 years and remain under supervision for five years through the COMET program.