Hearing postponed in child porn case

COEUR d’ALENE — A man accused of downloading child pornography on the dark web will be back in court next week.

Matthew G. Barszcz, 26, of Coeur d’Alene, is charged with five counts of sexual exploitation of a child by distribution of sexually explicit materials, all felonies.

A preliminary hearing in the case has been rescheduled for April 8.

The charges stem from July 2020, when investigators with the Internet Crimes Against Children task force searched for people possessing and distributing child pornography via BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file sharing network.

Police reportedly found a device containing multiple files that were previously identified as being of interest to child pornography investigations.

Using the IP address associated with the device, police determined it was located at the Coeur d’Alene residence where Barszcz lived.

When contacted by police, Barszcz allegedly said he searched for and downloaded child pornography in order to report it.

He also told police he knew it was illegal to possess child pornography but found the images and videos “intriguing,” according to court documents.

Barszcz reportedly said he was a follower of QAnon, a disproven conspiracy theory alleging that a secret cabal of Satan-worshipping, cannibalistic pedophiles is running a global child sex-trafficking ring.

Police seized several electronic devices belonging to Barszcz as evidence. A forensic examination of the devices reportedly yielded multiple pornographic videos involving children.

The content was downloaded between June and October 2020, according to court documents.

A judge issued a warrant for Barszcz’s arrest on March 11. Barszcz reportedly turned himself in the following day.

Judge James Stow ordered that Barszcz be held on $200,000 bail.

In Idaho, sexual exploitation of a child is a felony punishable by a maximum of 30 years in prison.