Admitted Child Porn Trafficker Awaits Sentencing

A Lakehurst 27-year-old faces up to seven years in New Jersey State Prison and will register as a sex offender under Megan's Law  for distributing child pornography.

Michael R. Allen pleaded guilty to a second-degree charge Monday in Ocean County Superior Court, according to information from the office of county Prosecutor Joseph D. Coronato. The terms of his sentence will be determined by the result of psychiatric evaluations, authorities said.

A referral from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to New Jersey's Crimes Against Children Task Force in Spring 2013 sparked a  two-month probe and a May 7 sunrise raid on Allen's home, authorities said.

Investigators said they recovered more than 5,000 degrading images of sexual assaults against children and seized Allen's computer, several electronic storage devices and other digital components. County high-tech crime investigators at the scene found active trading of kiddie porn with others through the Internet, authorities said.

Allen was charged with two counts of distribution at the time, and was released after posting bail.