Ex-Wellesley Coach Caught With Child Porn Could Get 4 Years: DOJ

WELLESLEY, MA — A former Wellesley High School track coach, who pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography, could be sentenced to four years in prison if a recommendation from federal prosecutors holds. Walter Johnson, 71, of Framingham, was arrested in 2017 and charged with sending and receiving of child pornography.

Prosecutors from U.S. Attorney Andrew E. Lelling’s office filed their sentencing recommendation Monday following Johnson's guilty plea June 10, the Boston Globe reported. In January 2017, police said they discovered child pornography being traded on Craigslist.

Prosecutors said the investigation led to Johnson, the former track coach at Wellesley High School and Harvard University. Police searched Johnson's home and said they found pictures and video of child pornography on his computer and a thumb drive hidden in his bedroom.

Johnson and prosecutors agreed to a plea deal, which dropped a child pornography distribution charge. The possession charge he pleaded guilty to has a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The distribution charge would have carried the same maximum but carried a minimum prison sentence of at least five years.

Johnson is scheduled for sentencing Tuesday.