The home Internet account registered to the head of Immigration and Customs in South Florida was used regularly to send images of nude children, according to recently unsealed search warrants.
The search warrants, obtained by the Sun-Sentinel, detail Internet activity for several screen names associated with the account of Anthony V. Mangione, who was indicted last week on transportation of child pornography, receipt of child pornography and possession of child pornography charges in West Palm Beach Federal court.
Mangione, 50, was ordered held pending a psychological evaluation. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The search warrants detail activity going back over two years and show how the Broward Sheriff's Office investigated the alleged crimes against the top federal agent in South Florida responsible for investigating child pornography trafficking.
In one instance, on Sept. 14, 2010, an AOL account registered to Mangione sent three sexually explicit images, two showing boys under age 10 and one showing a girl under age 12, to an unidentified recipient.
Another image of a girl under age 12 standing nude was sent by another AOL address registered to Mangione, the warrants said.
According to the warrants, another AOL account screen name, Flasunguy33@aol.com, received three images of "child erotica" between March and September 2010. Another, HsMom136@aol.com, had "several emails with child pornography images attached," the warrants said.
"Emails from the suspect account also contained additional images that displayed a sexual interest in children," one of the warrants said. "For example, at least three of the images depicted nude children being spanked. At least five additional images depicted the nude buttocks of children."
The warrants said BSO detectives were tipped off after sophisticated AOL software that scans for possible child pornography flagged files being sent from Mangione's account.
Mangione's account was shut down in September 2010, but three AOL instant messenger screen names were created on an Internet address associated with Mangione's AT&T service.
Those screen names were used until April, when FBI agents searched the Parkland home and west Miami-Dade office of Mangione and reportedly found child pornography images on his computer.
Mangione, who has been in charge of ICE's regional office since 2007, was put on paid administrative leave following the April search.
The warrants didn't say whether any child pornography was sent or received with the instant messenger screen names.
Mangione is due back in court on Oct. 17.
