FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Bridgeport, CT) - Joseph T. Corradino, State’s Attorney for the Judicial District of Bridgeport, announced today that on August 8, 2024, Peter Wheeler, age 24, of Fairfield, pleaded guilty in Bridgeport Superior Court to Sexual Assault in the Fourth Degree of a Child Under 13 in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-73a(a)(1)(A), two counts of Risk of Injury to a Minor in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53-21(a)(1), and Possession of Child Pornography in the First Degree in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-196d.
In November of 2023, the State Police Computer Crimes Unit received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children regarding possession of child pornography. The investigation led them to the address of Peter Wheeler. After obtaining a search warrant for the defendant’s computer, police found 565 images and 53 videos of child pornography in his possession.
Wheeler, who was working as a paraprofessional for the Fairfield school system, also pleaded guilty to Sexual Assault in the Fourth Degree after inappropriately touching the private parts of an 8-year-old girl at the school.
In addition, the defendant pleaded guilty to Risk of Injury to a Minor for coercing a young boy, also a student, to send him pictures of his private parts.
Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney Tiffany Lockshier conducted the prosecution with the assistance of Inspector Chris DiCarlo. The Fairfield Police Department conducted the investigation.
State’s Attorney Corradino said: “Society cannot tolerate the victimization of innocent youth. This conviction demonstrates that the safety of children is our highest priority.”
Under the plea agreement, Wheeler will be sentenced to 25 years to serve, execution of that sentence suspended after 8 years of incarceration, followed by 35 years of probation. The defendant will be sentenced by the Honorable Tracy Lee Dayton on October 8, 2024.