Former Rockville Police Officer Sentenced To 42 Months In Federal Prison For Possessing Over 12,000 Depictions Of Child Pornography

Per the Office of the U.S. Attorney, District of Maryland: U.S. District Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher today sentenced Daniel Morozewicz, age 38, of Frederick, Maryland, to 42 months in federal prison, followed by lifetime supervised release, for possession of child pornography.  Judge Gallagher also ordered that Morozewicz must pay $14,000 in restitution.

According to his guilty plea, from September 2020 to January 2021, while employed as a Rockville Police Officer and an Army National Guardsman, Morozewicz received, possessed, and distributed child pornography on the BitTorrent file sharing network.  Morozewicz also used multiple electronic devices to download and distribute child pornography involving prepubescent minors.

During that time, Morozewicz repeatedly distributed child pornography to undercover law enforcement officers.  On at least four instances in 2020, investigators determined that the devices associated with Morozewicz’s IP address downloaded and shared child pornographic files on the BitTorrent; including eight packages of child pornography.

As stated in his guilty plea, on March 4, 2021, Morozewicz received a tip that federal law enforcement wished to conduct an in-person interview with him.  The next day, on March 5, 2021, law enforcement executed a series of search and seizure warrants on Morozewicz’s residence, vehicle, and his person.  As a result of the search of Morozewicz’s person, law enforcement seized a smartphone which had been recently factory reset and erased in light of the impending visit from federal law enforcement.  He also admitted that he discarded his computer in anticipation of a visit from law enforcement.  Morozewicz’s actions were viewed as an attempt to impede the investigation and prosecution of his child pornography offenses.

Multiple electronic devices were seized in connection the warrants executed at Morozewicz’s residence and in his vehicle.  A forensic examination of Morozewicz’s devices revealed that he possessed over 12,300 depictions of child pornography and erotica, including over 200 depicts involving the sexual abuse of infants and toddlers, and over 90 child pornographic images involving sado-masochistic conduct.