The Attorney General’s Office announced that Steven J. Malaney Jr., 59, of Burlington, Vermont, was arraigned today on four felony counts and one misdemeanor count of Possession of Child Sexual Abuse Material. The charges brought against Mr. Malaney are the result of a criminal investigation conducted by the Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (VT-ICAC), which included personnel from the Attorney General’s Office, Burlington Police Department, and Homeland Security Investigations. VT-ICAC’s investigation included the execution of a search warrant into Mr. Malaney’s residence and his electronic devices.
The investigation was initiated when VT-ICAC received multiple CyberTipline Reports from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that files of suspected child sexual abuse material were uploaded onto a Microsoft platform, Bing Image. Bing Image is used to search for similar images throughout the web that are visually similar to the image uploaded to the platform by the user.
Based upon the criminal investigation of these tips into the location of the uploaded child sexual abuse materials, Mr. Malaney was identified as the suspect. Law enforcement officers located child sexual abuse material on Mr. Malaney’s laptop computer when they executed their search warrant, and law enforcement will be conducting further examinations of the seized devices to search for evidence of the possession of additional files of child sexual abuse material.
Mr. Malaney pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in the Vermont Superior Court, Chittenden Criminal Division. The Court, Judge John Pacht presiding, ordered Mr. Malaney to abide by certain conditions of release which restrict Mr. Malaney’s access to minors, the internet, and devices capable of accessing the internet during the pendency of this case.
VT-ICAC investigates cases of child sexual exploitation occurring over the internet, including the production and online distribution of child sexual abuse materials. VT-ICAC also provides forensic examination services, technical assistance, law enforcement training, and public education and outreach.
The Attorney General’s Office emphasizes that individuals charged with a crime are legally presumed innocent until their guilt is proven beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Contact: Lauren Jandl, Chief of Staff, 802-828-3171