Rutgers University biochemistry instructor Gavin Swiatek has been arrested on charges that he used a computer in his university office to share hundreds of videos of child pornography over the Internet, according to Attorney General Jeffrey S. Chiesa and Criminal Justice Director Stephen J. Taylor. 

State law enforcement offiicials arrested the 49-year old Swiatek late yesterday afternoon at his home in Hillsborough, and charged him with second-degree distribution of child pornography and fourth-degree possession of child pornography. 

Swiatek was lodged in the Middlesex County Jail with bail set at $50,000.  He was charged as a result of an investigation by the New Jersey State Police Digital Technology Investigations Unit (DTIU) and the Division of Criminal Justice Computer Analysis & Technology Unit.

“Those who view and distribute child pornography contribute to the tragic exploitation of children, because they fuel the demand that drives suppliers to produce these abhorrent materials,” said Attorney General Chiesa. “The charges against this individual are very serious.”

“We want to send a powerful deterrent message to anyone who would consider linking themselves into the vile network of suppliers and users of child pornography,” said Director Taylor.  “They will find themselves behind bars like this man.  We will continue to partner with the New Jersey State Police to aggressively investigate and prosecute these cases.”  

The New Jersey State Police DTIU determined that a computer user on the Rutgers University Cook campus used peer-to-peer file sharing technology to make child pornography readily available to Internet users worldwide.  Assisted by the Rutgers University Police Department and Rutgers Office of Information Technology, the state police traced the source of the child pornography to Swiatek's office at Rutgers University. 

Swiatek allegedly shared hundreds of files containing child pornography, mostly videos, using the peer-to-peer technology.  State Police detectives seized Swiatek's university computer from his office.  Investigators also executed a search warrant and seized a laptop computer and digital media from Swiatek and from his home.