Whitehall man admits to having child pornography

A Washington County man has pleaded guilty to child pornography charges.

Kevin Smurphat, 35, of Whitehall, admitted in U.S. District Court Monday to uploading images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct to a file hosting service, prosecutors said.

He also participated in a group chat in which he distributed and received child pornography.

Smurphat has a previous conviction for attempted sexual contact with a minor younger than 11.

He will be sentenced at a later date and faces up to 40 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.