Richard Melone of Montville was sentenced to a year and a half in prison Friday for possessing child pornography, a crime he had tried to pin on his father-in-law, a well-known former police dispatcher and firefighter in the region.

Melone, 25, was arrested last year after Albert Musto, the stepfather of his then-girlfriend, told police he had found on his computer images of underage girls in various sexual positions and evidence that somebody had visited pornographic Web sites featuring young girls and boys.

Melone had admitted to police that he viewed the pornography while masturbating, according to Senior Assistant State's Attorney John P. Gravalec-Pannone. He pleaded guilty to the crime under the Alford doctrine, meaning he did not admit guilt but conceded the state had enough evidence to convict him. He agreed to a sentence of eight years, suspended after 18 months and 10 years' probation.

"This has gone on as long as it should have, and I'm glad it's over," Musto said via cell phone Friday after hearing Melone had finally gone to prison. "I love my daughter to death. I just hope that now we can mend our relationship."

Musto and his wife, Donna, are moving to North Carolina. He had served as an emergency dispatcher for the town of Montville and worked for the Mohegan Tribal Fire Department. He volunteered with the Oakdale Fire Department and was chief of the Gardner Lake Fire Department.

Gravalec-Pannone, the prosecutor, said Melone's crime in itself was "despicable," and added that Melone had put Musto at risk of being charged for possession of pornography and of community ridicule.

Musto said he had no choice but to report the pornography after his wife discovered it on their computer. Police seized the desktop computer and later returned for their laptop. They found 256 pornographic images.

"I could have lost everything -- my career, my house, my reputation," Musto said "Everybody where I lived knows who I am. I would never, ever do something like that."

Melone had previously been convicted of risk of injury to a minor for having a sexual relationship with a 13-year-old girl when he was 18. He received a fully suspended sentence but later served a year in prison for violating his probation.

Melone said during a recent telephone conversation that he thinks he was "set up" by his father-in-law. He admitted he did use the living room computer at the Musto home to look at adult pornography.

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