Level III sex offender arrested on child pornography charges for a 5th time

PROVIDENCE – A level III sex offender has been ordered detained in federal custody following his 5th arrest on child pornography charges, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.

60-year-old Patrick M. O’Donnell, convicted in Rhode Island state court on child pornography charges four times between 2007 and 2020, was most recently released from Rhode Island state prison on June 1, 2023. According to charging documents, O’Donnell allegedly downloaded and accessed child pornography and child erotica on cellphones he was prohibited from possessing as a condition of his probation. He was living at a homeless shelter in Cranston at the time.

During a sex-offender compliance check conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, members of the Rhode Island State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, Cranston Police, and the Rhode Island Department of Corrections, Probation and Parole, O’Donnell was found to be in possession of two cellphones. A live digital preview allegedly revealed child pornography on one of the devices and child erotica on both.

O’Donnell was charged in federal court with allegedly knowingly possessing child pornography, which carries a ten-year mandatory minimum sentence if a defendant has previously been convicted of a child pornography offense. The defendants’ sentence will be determined by a federal judge after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John P. McAdams.