A Roseville man whose daughter was arrested last year in connection with the death of his granddaughter has pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography.
Daniel Harrison McGrath, 58, of Roseville pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to possessing more than 3,000 images and videos of child pornography, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.
The pornography was discovered during a police investigation into the death of McGrath's 2-year-old granddaughter. McKinley Wilder's body was found in McGrath's home April 4. Denise Marie McGrath Wilder, the child's mother and McGrath's daughter, has been charged with cruelty to a child and neglect in connection with the youngster's death and awaits trial in Placer Superior Court.
McGrath was out of town when the child was found dead at his home. According to police, Wilder had been the only adult present with McKinley and a 5-year-old daughter over the previous two days.
According to federal court document's, during an audio and videotaped interview about McKinley's death, law enforcement officers told McGrath that a search warrant would be executed and that his computers would be taken as part of the investigation. McGrath told authorities that he had "sensitive" information on the computers, and then admitted that he had files of child pornography on the computers.
Roseville police detectives obtained a search warrant, and a forensic review of the seized computer evidence identified more than 3,000 images and videos of child pornography. These images and videos were contained on the disconnected computer hard drive, as well as on multiple CDs that McGrath created.
McGrath is to be sentenced Sept. 13 by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, according to the news release.
McGrath's daughter remains in Placer County Jail in lieu of $500,000 bail. According to Placer Superior Court online records, her next court date is April 19.
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