Peter Bilardello (Cobb County Sheriff's Office)
COBB COUNTY, Ga. - A former Cobb County deputy has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of distribution and possession of child pornography.
Peter Bilardello, 51, of Marietta, Georgia was arraigned before a federal judge for the charges after an indictment in January. Bilardello had been employed by the Cobb County Sheriff's Office for more than 15 years and worked for part of that time in the Sex Offenders Unit.
According to information presented in court, an investigation began in November 2019 when the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a report that a user of the social media platform MeWe had allegedly uploaded and shared around a dozen images depicting children under the age of 12 in sexually explicit situations.
After an investigation that lasted over two years, Cobb County police determined that the user of the social media account was Bilardello.
"Bilardello allegedly shared child pornography through social media while he was employed as a law enforcement officer," said U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. "The victimization of children is one of the most heinous crimes imaginable, and distributing images of child sexual abuse compounds the harm. It is especially troubling that these crimes were allegedly committed by someone in a position of public trust."
Officials say a search of Bilardello's home, cell phone, and the MeWe account led investigators to confirm the deputy had uploaded and shared the child pornography while talking with other users. The search also led agents to recover more than 100 images and videos depicting young children in sexually explicit situations.
Bilardello was arrested immediately and resigned from his job at the Cobb County Sheriff's Office.
"Every time pornographic images are distributed online, that child is continuously re-victimized", said Philip Wislar, Acting Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. "The FBI will not tolerate predators who prey on our children, especially ones like Bilardello, who are sworn law enforcement officers that took an oath to protect the citizens of our community."
The case remains under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cobb County Police Department.
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