An Anderson attorney is in a community confinement facility after being arrested for distribution and possession of child pornography.

Samuel Hasler was arrested and charged with two counts of distributing child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography Tuesday in U.S. District Court following a joint investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and police in Carmel and Fishers.

According to the complaint, Hasler used a computer to distribute multiple images of child pornography through the Internet to someone in another state on Dec. 3, 2009. On Feb. 14, he allegedly used a computer to distribute more images of child pornography by sending them through the Internet to an undercover police officer.

The complaint also alleges Hasler kept images and videos of child pornography in his law office on an external hard drive; those were recovered during a search of his office Tuesday.

Hasler is not accused of producing any of the child pornography. He was arrested without incident at his law firm Tuesday and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kennard P. Foster in the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division. He was released on his own recognizance and ordered to stay in an Indianapolis community confinement facility on lock-down status pending further proceedings.

Hasler, 50, is a sole practitioner in Anderson and was admitted to the bar in 1987. If convicted, he faces between 5 and 20 years in prison for distribution and up to 10 years in prison for the possession charge. He also faces up to $250,000 in fines per count and a term of supervised release, possibly for life.