Subject Charged with Disseminating Indecent Material in Pine Plains

The Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest of Hayez D. Prelich, age 25 of Pine Plains, in connection with a lengthy investigation into the dissemination of indecent material to minors.

Early in 2022 Mr. Prelich was charged with disseminating indecent material to minors, a felony, by the Sheriff’s Office Detective Bureau. After being charged Mr. Prelich failed to appear for his court appearances, after which a warrant was issued for his arrest. On 11/2/22 he was located & arrested on the warrant in New York City and was extradited back to Dutchess County, at which time he was further charged with bail jumping (felony) and criminal contempt (misdemeanor). At this time Mr. Prelich is accused of sending indecent images to minors using social media.

If anyone has further information about this case, or similar incidents involving Mr. Prelich, they are urged to contact Detective Sistarenik at 845-486-3820. The Sheriff’s Office can also be contacted via the tipline at 845-605-2583 or dcsotips@gmail.com, and all information will be kept confidential.

After being arrested and processed on 11/2/22 Mr. Prelich was arraigned before the Town of Pine Plains Court and remanded to the Dutchess County Jail in lieu of $20,000 cash/$40,000 bond/$100,000 partially secured bond. As with any criminal case the charges described above are merely accusations and Mr. Prelich is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

This arrest is a direct result of the diligence of the Sheriff’s Office Detective Bureau and Pine Plains School Resource Officer, along with the assistance of the Dutchess County Drug Task Force and US Marshals Regional Task Force. The investigation is continuing and more information may be released as it becomes available.