Castle Shannon Man Pleads Guilty to Possession of Child Sex Assault Images and Videos

DOJ Press

PITTSBURGH – A former resident of Castle Shannon, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of Possession of Material Depicting the Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.

David Colaianni, age 62, pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge William S. Stickman, IV.

In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that on November 1, 2019, a federal search warrant was executed by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Colaianni’s person. A cell phone was seized and submitted for forensic analysis. The analysis conducted of its contents revealed Colaianni’s possession of approximately 73 still images and 120 videos depicting the sexual exploitation of minors, many of whom were younger than 12 years of age. Colaianni was arrested and has been in custody since that time.

Judge Stickman scheduled sentencing for June 22, 2022, at 10:30 a.m. The law provides for a total sentence of ten years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.


Pending sentencing, the court continued Colaianni’s detention.


Assistant United States Attorney Carolyn J. Bloch is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Colaianni.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc

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