A Salamanca man has been sentenced to serve 23 years in prison.

U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced that Monday Robert Calkins, Jr., 38, who was convicted of production of child pornography, was sentenced to serve the sentence by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.

Assistant U.S. Attorney David J. Rudroff, who handled the case, stated that in April 2020, the New York State Police began investigating Calkins after receiving dozens of reports from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children referencing Calkins as possessing suspected child pornography within his Google accounts. In September 2020, State Police investigators executed a search warrant at Calkins’ East Jefferson Street residence in Salamanca, seizing four cell phones and an SD card. A forensic analysis conducted by Homeland Security Investigations recovered thousands of images and videos of child pornography, including several images that Calkins produced using a minor victim.

The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Eugene Staniszewski, and Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Scarpino.