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Press Release

Man Sentenced for Receiving Images of Child Sexual Abuse

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Virginia

RICHMOND, Va. – A Henrico man was sentenced today to eight years in prison and 10 years of supervised release for receiving images of child sexual abuse.

According to court documents, Charles Tiffit Ellis, Jr., 37, responded to an ad placed on Craigslist by an undercover officer, which read in part, “Looking to meet other taboo Dads/moms to chat n more….” Ellis communicated with the undercover via Kik Messenger and after confirming that they were on the same page regarding the term “taboo,” Ellis sent the undercover officer links to his Dropbox account for several child pornography videos involving prepubescent children. Ellis also sent the undercover a video of someone Ellis claimed was a 14-year-old girl he met online and filmed performing oral sex on him. A search warrant on Ellis’s home yielded corroborating evidence on his phone.

Tracy Doherty-McCormick, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Adam S. Lee, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge M. Hannah Lauck. Members of FBI Richmond’s Child Exploitation Task Force investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian R. Hood prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources” for more information about Internet safety education.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:17-cr-108.

Contact

Joshua Stueve
Director of Communications
joshua.stueve@usdoj.gov

Updated February 8, 2018

Topic
Project Safe Childhood