By Nathan Duke
Edwin Morales, who currently lives at 2625 Third Ave. in the Bronx, pleaded guilty Jan. 9 before Acting Queens Supreme Court Justice Dorothy Chin-Brandt to possessing a photo of a sexual performance of a child. Chin-Brandt sentenced Morales to four months in jail and 10 years' probation, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.”The photos that the defendant has admitted to possessing were actual children who have been victimized and sexually exploited for no other purpose than to satisfy the prurient desires of sexual predators,” the DA said.Morales, who lived at 34-16 Astoria Blvd. in Astoria at the time of his arrest Nov. 10, was also ordered to register as a Level One sex offender, Brown said. He was arrested after his wife discovered child pornography on his personal laptop computer and called the police, the DA said. The defendant, who worked as a limousine driver, also maintained an unofficial fan Web site Ð www.oavirus.com Ð for the radio show “Opie and Anthony,” Brown said. But there was no evidence that anyone affiliated with the show had any involvement with Morales' criminal activities, the DA said.Morales admitted to receiving unsolicited mail, including a CD containing images and video clips of children engaged in sexual activity, which he downloaded onto his computer, Brown said. The defendant pleaded guilty to possessing more than 95 images on the computer which depicted children less than 15 years of age involved in sexual acts, the DA said.”This case should serve as a warning to all such predators that the law enforcement community will do everything within its power to protect underage children,” the DA said.Reach reporter Nathan Duke by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 156.
