South county man facing federal child porn charge

A Frewsburg man on federal supervised release for a past child porn conviction is facing new charges following an investigation.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office on Friday announced the arrest of 57-year-old Jeffrey Paden on a charge of receipt and possession of child pornography.

A probe began after the New York State Police received information from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that someone in Frewsburg had allegedly uploaded images of child pornography to the internet. An investigation traced the images to Paden, who is on federal supervised release for a 2015 conviction for possession of child pornography.

In that case, Paden was sentenced to serve 57 months in prison and ordered to register as a sex offender upon release.

On Tuesday, the FBI executed a search warrant on 12 electronic devices seized earlier in the investigation by the state police; multiple images of child pornography were recovered, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

The complaint is the result of an investigation by the FBI, the Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force and the New York State Police. A conviction on the charge carries a prison sentence of 15 to 40 years.

Former Postal employee charged with theft of mail

A Jamestown woman previously employed by the U.S. Postal Service has been indicted on federal charges for allegedly stealing gift cards and money from the mail.

Anita Miller, 40, is facing six counts of theft of mail by a postal employee and two counts of delay of mail by a postal employee. The charges carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

On six occasions between February and March in 2022, Miller allegedly stole gift cards and cash from mailed envelopes. In addition, on two occasions in March 2022, Miller reportedly delayed delivery of mailed envelopes.

The indictment is the result of an investigation by U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Matthew Modafferi, Special Agent-in-Charge Northeast Field Office.

The charges carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

This past December, a Fredonia man who worked as a postal employee in Dunkirk pleaded guilty to theft of mail.

Wiedenhofer, while employed as a carrier, stole mail between September 2020 and February 2021. The USPS began an investigation after receiving complaints of missing mail items and opened and rifled packages from customers, whose addresses were located on Wiedenhofer’s delivery route.

Wiedenhofer admitted to stealing various items, including cash, checks, trading cards, gift cards, and clothing items. Evidence of these items were recovered by the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General from Wiedenhofer’s personal residence and vehicle.

CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE

¯ RIPLEY — James E. Davis, 25, of Ripley, was charged with third-degree criminal mischief. Deputies responded at 9 p.m. Thursday to Ripley for a reported altercation. An investigation found that Davis allegedly caused damage to another person’s property. He was transported to jail for arraignment.

¯ MAYVILLE — Xavier Guadarrama, 21, of Jamestown, was charged with two counts of second-degree attempted assault. Guadarrama, an incarcerated individual at the Chautauqua County Jail, allegedly stabbed two jail employees with a pencil around 10:50 a.m. Monday. Guadarrama was arraigned at the jail on the new charges.