AUGUSTA, Georgia: An Augusta man has been sentenced to more than 12 years in prison in federal court after pleading guilty to possessing child pornography.The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Court Judge J. Randal Hall and announced by Margaret E. “Meg” Heap, U.S.
Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.Martin Lindner, 52, of Augusta, was sentenced to 151 months in prison followed by 15 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to Receipt of Child Pornography. Lindner was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $66,500. There is no parole in the federal system. Court documents and testimony show that in February 2025, Lindner received child pornography, including videos and images, depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
Using his home computer, Lindner would receive the material via a peer-to-peer file sharing software. “This sentence reflects the seriousness of crimes that exploit and victimize children,” said U.S. Attorney Heap. “Protecting children from predators is one of our highest priorities and we will work closely with our law enforcement partners to hold accountable those who engage in these reprehensible offenses.”“The receipt of child pornography not only harms the young victims portrayed in those images, but it also fuels a heinous market,” said Matthew Ploskunak, Supervisory Senior Special Agent for the Augusta office of FBI Atlanta.
“The FBI remains committed to working with our law enforcement partners to identify and prosecute individuals who commit heinous crimes against minors.”This case was investigated by the FBI, Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, and prosecuted for the United States by Southern District of Georgia Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara M. Lyons.