Maple Valley man sentenced to 4 years in prison for possession of child pornography

A 56-year-old Maple Valley man and former National Guard member was sentenced to four years in prison and 15 years of supervised release for possession of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Nick Brown announced Friday.

Paul Von Nahme was arrested in April 2021 after an overseas law enforcement agency reported that he was using the online messaging platform Kik to send images of child sex abuse to someone overseas.

The agency also reported that Von Nahme made claims online that he raped a 9-year-old.

“You need to remember the damage and devastation these images do to the victims,” said U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones at the sentencing hearing. “Your conduct helps make the [child pornography market] survive.”

According to records, law enforcement found more than 3,400 images of child rape and abuse on Von Nahme’s electronic devices, coming from places such as Russia, Australia, France, and Indonesia, among others.

Under a law passed in 2018 — the Amy, Vicki, and Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act (AVAA), Von Nahme must pay at least $3,000 to each child identified in the images, which could be as much as $126,000.

Von Nahme pleaded guilty on November 3, 2021 and was released on bond pending sentencing.

However, in March 2022, he was returned to custody for having unauthorized electronic devices connected to the internet.

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