A 39-year-old man was unanimously found guilty by the Mixed Jury Court of Thessaloniki for possession of hundreds of child pornography files. The court sentenced the defendant to seven years in prison, while recognizing the mitigating factor of his previous good conduct. However, despite recognizing this mitigating circumstance, it was decided that the appeal would not have suspensive effect. Thus, the 39-year-old returned to prison to serve his sentence. It should be noted that in July 2024, after his testimony to the investigator, he was deemed a temporary detainee.
Shock in Thessaloniki: Over 1,000 child pornography files found on hard drive
It is noted that the identification of the 39-year-old was made through a popular online platform, where he had stored 84 photographs and 51 videos of child pornography, as stated in the case file. Moreover, during the authorities’ investigations, over 1,000 files containing nude minors in indecent poses were found on an external hard drive in his possession.
Dark Web defense cited in his testimony
It should be noted that in his testimony, the 39-year-old argued before the judges that the disputed files originated from downloads on the “dark web” (Dark Web). He claimed that the downloads were made as part of his research involvement with cybersecurity issues, with the purpose of analyzing viruses and malicious software. “I downloaded the files to examine the virus and deleted the rest, I wasn’t interested in their content,” he said, however admitting that he acted “recklessly.” In conclusion, he admitted: “It was my mistake that I didn’t check whether I had actually deleted them.”
