Registered Sex Offender Had Child Porn In Camden County Home: Feds

LINDENWOLD, NJ — A Camden County man, previously imprisoned for a sex offense against a minor, landed in trouble again after federal authorities say they found child pornography in his home.

Matthew Knapp, of Lindenwold, made his initial court appearance Thursday for the charge of child-pornography possession. He was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond.

In 2007, Knapp was convicted of aggravated indecent assault of a person less than 16 years of age in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Knapp and another man — both Marines at the time — faced multiple charges of statutory sexual assault in 2006 after encounters with a 13-year-old girl, according to the Associated Press.

Knapp is a registered sex offender, according to court documents.

In February 2022, undercover law enforcement began investigating a file-sharing BitTorrent network for the potential distribution of child pornography. Police found multiple images and videos depicting the offense, which linked back to an IP Address registered to Knapp's Lindenwold home, the criminal complaint says.

Authorities executed a federal search warrant May 10 at Knapp's home, where they found five devices in the 38-year-old's bedroom with child pornography: a desktop computer, a flash drive and three external hard drives, authorities said. Investigators found more than 300 images and about 50 videos on the devices, according to the affidavit.

During questioning, Knapp told police he was familiar with BitTorrent. He also admitted he had seen child pornography but claimed he hadn't intended to do so, the complaint states.

If convicted, the charge of child-pornography possession for a repeat offender carries 10-20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.