A Butler man is accused of having child pornography.

State police arrested the suspect, 39-year-old Justin M. Buchignani, Monday stemming from an investigation that began last year.

District Judge William Fullerton arraigned Buchignani on three counts of disseminating child pornography, 25 counts of possession of child pornography, and one count of criminal use of a communication facility.

He was released on his own recognizance following arraignment.

The investigation began after police in December 2019 received a tip via the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force that Google had reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children the prior month that someone had uploaded three images of suspected child pornography onto their servers, authorities said.

An investigation of the internet account linked it to Buchignani and his home, an apartment on the 500 block of West Cunningham Street.

Police on Sept. 17 obtained an search warrant for the defendant's computer hardware and software, related equipment, cell phones and all devices that could provide digital evidence.

He was home Sept. 18 when the warrant was executed. Police interviewed him in the parking lot of the apartment building.

“Buchignani admitted to possessing (child pornography),” according to charging documents, during that interview.

Police seized multiple cell phones from the apartment. During a forensic examination, investigators allegedly found a combined 113 images of child pornography on those devices.

Buchignani's preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 11. Online court records did not list an attorney for him, and he could not be reached for comment.