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A Bangor man has been accused of distributing child sexual abuse material following an FBI investigation at his Essex Street home this week.
Tyler Jewett has been charged with the distribution of child pornography, Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew McCormack said Friday.
When officers investigated Jewett’s home Wednesday, Jewett told officers he had used the internet and dark web to obtain child sexual abuse material “as recently as last week,” and had sent such material on Feb. 18, 2026, according to an affidavit filed in court. Jewett’s laptop and phone, secured by officers Wednesday, contained child sexual abuse material, according to the affidavit.
Jewett was part of an investigation that began on Feb. 18, 2026, according to the affidavit. Jewett that day messaged an account on Telegram, a social media platform, that was being used by an FBI agent. Before the FBI started using the account, it was run by an Ohio man who was arrested by the FBI for attempting to have sex with multiple underage girls.
Jewett messaged the account asking for pictures of underage girls, but the agent running the account said he didn’t have any to share, according to the affidavit.
The next day, Jewett shared 17 videos with the account that depicted the sexual abuse of children, according to the affidavit.
After securing a subpoena, the FBI linked Jewett’s Telegram account to his first name and IP address, according to the affidavit. The FBI then linked the account to his cell service provider, and later found his home address.
Local police had previously fielded complaints against Jewett, according to the affidavit.
A complaint about Jewett was filed with the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office in February 2024. A woman who had spoken with Jewett said that he confessed to her that he was a pedophile and had sexually abused a 3-month-old, according to the affidavit.
The affidavit does not mention any actions the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office took following the complaint.
Jewett had a detention hearing Thursday and is in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service, McCormack said.