SALISBURY — A Salisbury man who pleaded guilty in August to production of child pornography was sentenced Friday to 28 years in prison, according to Matthew G.T. Martin, U.S. attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina. 

Joshua Douglas Martorelli, 36, pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography and one count of attempted production of child pornography. He was sentenced by Chief District Judge Thomas D. Schroeder to 28 years in prison followed by 25 years of supervised release. 

A news release said Martorelli targeted children for sexual exploitation by forming romantic relationships with their mothers. He then cajoled the mothers to exploit their own children for his sexual gratification, a news release said.

In fall 2016, Martorelli told the mother of a young boy to sexually assault the child and send him a picture of the abuse, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The mother complied. Messages recovered by investigators revealed that Martorelli made similar requests during the same time period.

The case was investigated by a team of agencies that included the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office, State Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations. All are members of the North Carolina Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. 

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat online child sexual exploitation and abuse. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric L. Iverson.

For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.