Scheduled to appear for his arraignment today on two federal counts of distribution and possession of child pornography, a former Roanoke Rapids police officer had his case continued until the November 10 term of court in New Bern.

Court records filed today also show that Matthew Nielsen’s attorney was granted permission to withdraw from the case. 

Court records do not go into detail on the decision by Nielsen’s attorney to withdraw. They only state that Joseph Zeszotarski Jr. entered an oral motion to step away from the case and that federal Magistrate Judge Robert B. Jones Jr. approved the request.

Jones directed the Federal Public Defender to appoint new counsel. “The court has determined that the ends of justice outweigh the interests of the defendant and the public in a speedy trial,” an entry in the docket says.

A federal grand jury last December returned an indictment charging Nielsen with the two counts.