Source: US FBI
BOSTON – A physician employed at the Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center in Bedford, Mass. has been indicted by a federal grand jury for receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Sven Knudsen Ljaamo, 70, was indicted on one count of receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. The defendant was previously arrested and charged by criminal complaint on April 23, 2025.on April 23, 2025 He was subsequently released on conditions following a detention hearing.
According to the charging documents, law enforcement received a CyberTip reporting that over 100 files of suspected CSAM files had allegedly been uploaded to Ljaamo’s Google account. When Ljaamo spoke to investigators, he allegedly admitted to viewing, downloading and saving pornographic material involving female minors. It is further alleged that several CSAM files, along with tens of thousands of pornography files, were found during a review of Ljaamo’s devices, including on a cell phone Ljaamo kept in his office at the VA Medical Center.
The charge of receipt of child pornography provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of possession of child pornography provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Kimberly Milka, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Christopher Algieri, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, Northeast Field Office made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Billerica, Lowell and Salem Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sandra Gonzalez Sanchez of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.