A North Huntingdon man was ordered to serve at least nine months in jail after he was sentenced Tuesday for possession of child pornography.

James Frederick Molzer, 32, pleaded guilty in July to 11 felony counts in which investigators said he possessed multiple images of children performing sex acts. According to court records the all the children were under 10 and in some cases were ranged between 3 to 5 years old.

Police said the images were found on Molzer’s cell phone.

Molzer was charged earlier this year following a sting operation that identified pornography traffickers, according to court records. Authorities said Molzer was cooperative and claimed he and his friends collected the pornographic images since college and did so in an effort to exploit each other.

Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio sentenced Molzer to nine to 23 months in jail and seven years on probation. She also ordered he not use the internet, continue counseling and register as a convicted sex offender for the next 15 years.

Raver asked that Molzer receive consecutive sentences, saying that he was not entitled to any additional leniency. Prosecutors said Molzer already benefited from having more than dozen charges dismissed last summer and was not subjected to additional counts after more pornographic images were discovered as part of subsequent searches of devices he owned.

Molzer had been free after posting $50,000 bail after his arrest in January. At the conclusion of Tuesday’s hearing he was handcuffed and taken to Westmoreland County Prison to begin serving his sentence.

Defense attorney Bruce Castor III argued against any jail time for Molzer, saying he previously worked as a security officer at a Pittsburgh casino and later held a computer and finance job at a local bank.

“He’s not a hardened criminal. He’s college educated and is a productive member of society who is most remorseful for his actions and sought treatment,” Castor said. “This is something that will follow him around forever.”

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