Rhode Island Man Sentenced To 6 Years In Prison For Child Pornography Conviction

HOPKINTON, RI — A Rhode Island man was sentenced Monday to six years in federal prison after he was caught sharing child pornography while awaiting trial in state court in connection to two unrelated child pornography cases, U.S. Attorney Zachary Cunha said.

Christopher Leherissier, 34, of Hopkinton, admitted that in February 2021, he uploaded video files of child pornography involving prepubescent children on the social media platform Kik. Leherisser pleaded guilty in federal court on Nov. 15, 2022, to distribution of child pornography and possession of child pornography.

Rhode Island State Police identified the IP address, email and Kik username Leherissier used to upload child pornography. Prosecutors said state police found 160 pictures and 124 videos of child pornography stored on a mobile device and hard drive they seized from Leherissier. They also found 80 pictures and 101 videos of child pornography stored in two email accounts belong to Leherissier.

When Leherissier was arrested, he was already on pre-trial on two different cases pending in state court involving charges of soliciting a minor and disseminating indecent matter to that minor in early 2020. In fall 2020, he was also accused of storing child pornography on a DropBox account and on his electronic devices.

Following Leherissier's prison sentence, he must serve 10 years of supervised release. He must also pay $8,000 to each of his eight victims.