Southbridge Man Arrested for Possession of Child Pornography

BOSTON - A Southbridge man was arrested and charged today in federal court in Boston for possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

Yojuande Blaize, 23, was charged with possession of child pornography. The defendant was arrested today and following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston this afternoon, he was held pending a detention hearing scheduled for May 27, 2026.

According to the charging documents, law enforcement located CSAM while conducting a preliminary review of a folder on Blaize's device that contained over 7,000 videos and images. Blaize also allegedly admitted that he would regularly seek out and purchase CSAM online and, on multiple occasions, advertise and sell the CSAM he obtained.

The charge of possession of child pornography provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of $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 and Nathan Hebert, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Security Service, Boston Field Office made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Southbridge Police Department and the United States Secret Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristen M. Noto of the Worcester Branch Office 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 document are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.