Source: United States Department of Justice News
PROVIDENCE – A level III sex offender, charged and convicted three times in Rhode Island state court on child pornography charges, has been in indicted by a federal grand jury on additional, and unrelated, child pornography charges, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.
The grand jury returned an indictment charging Patrick K. Beattie, 37, of Charlestown, with two counts of receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.
It is alleged in court documents that in February 2023, a state probation officer received information that Beattie, while serving a terms of state probation related to previous state child pornography convictions, was allegedly violating the terms of his state probation. It was alleged that Beattie possessed an internet-connected smartphone in violation of the terms of his court-imposed probation.
Court documents allege that, on February 10, 2023, during an unannounced home visit of Beattie’s residence, as was permitted by the terms of his state probation, Beattie was found to be in possession of a smartphone. A subsequent, court-authorized search of the phone revealed child pornography involving prepubescent minors.
Beattie was arraigned on Friday in federal court and ordered detained in federal custody. A federal indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
According to court documents, Beattie was previously convicted in Rhode Island State Court in April 2017, March 2022, and in January 2023, on child pornography charges.
The current case, charged by way of a federal grand jury indictment, is being prosecuted in federal court by Assistant U.S. Attorney Denise M. Barton.
The matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, Charlestown Police, and Rhode Island State Police, with the assistance of the Rhode Island Department of Corrections Probation and Parole Unit.
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