Porn star Austin Wolf arrested following FBI investigation
Adult film star Austin Wolf has been arrested and now faces child pornography charges following an investigation by the FBI, the Justice Department says.
Wolf, whose real name is Justin Smith, is accused of "sending and receiving hundreds of videos of child pornography via the Telegram application," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.
"I want to make it clear: those who distribute child sexual abuse images prey upon the most vulnerable in our society. Each image is a crime scene, leaving lasting scars on innocent victims," FBI Assistant Director in Charge James Smith said in a statement. "The FBI is relentless in our pursuit of these perpetrators."
Smith, 43, has been charged with one count of distribution and receipt of child pornography – which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and maximum sentence of 20 years – and one count of possession of child pornography, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years, prosecutors say.
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The Attorney’s Office alleges that the videos Smith sent and received "depicted children as young as infants, including a video showing a 10-year-old child bound and raped."
"In addition to sharing child pornography via Telegram, Smith is also charged with possessing hundreds of additional videos containing child pornography in his Manhattan apartment," it added.
Smith is set to be arraigned in Manhattan federal court today.
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Investigators say between March 24 and March 28 of this year, Smith, using an anonymous Telegram account, swapped hundreds of videos containing child porn with another person on the messaging platform. That person’s phone was later seized and searched by the FBI.
Then an FBI agent working undercover began chatting with Smith’s anonymous Telegram account, during which he revealed details confirming his identity, prosecutors say.
"On April 21, 2024, the FBI executed a search warrant at SMITH’s Manhattan apartment, which revealed an SD card with hundreds of videos containing child pornography," the Attorney’s Office added.