BANGOR – A local man who told police he looked at pictures of nude children to control his pedophilia appeared Friday in federal court on a charge of possession of child pornography.

Jacques Croll, 45, a registered sex offender, said the pornography found in his home and on his computer kept him from “being active” as a pedophile, according to court documents filed Wednesday at U.S. District Court.

Croll’s bail was set at $5,000 unsecured bond after he appeared Friday for a detention hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Margaret Kravchuk. He had been released from Penobscot County Jail as of Friday afternoon, according to a jail official.

If convicted of the charge, Croll faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

Croll consented in November to a search of his Palm Street apartment after a friend of his tipped off Bangor police to the presence of child pornography on his computer, according to court documents.

Inside a safe in Croll’s pantry, police found a brown notebook that contained numerous images of nude boys that appeared to have been printed off the Internet.

In another folder, police found Polaroid photographs of a prepubescent boy, including one that showed Croll performing oral sex on the boy, according to court documents.

Police later identified and interviewed the boy, now an adult, who said that while he was between the ages of 9 and 12, he had had sexual encounters with Croll, and that the pictures were taken while he was drunk at Croll’s residence.

The pictures also depicted the boy’s genitals and buttocks.

Croll has two prior convictions for unlawful sexual contact in Maine, including one in Machias that involved 44 victims, according to court documents.

Croll told police that he still struggles at times with his pedophilia but believes he generally has it under control, the documents state.