Orlando Man Who Destroyed Hard Drive Pleads Guilty To Distributing And Possessing Child Sex Abuse Materials

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Christopher Tristan McKie (38, Orlando) has pleaded guilty to distribution and possession of child sex abuse material. McKie faces a minimum mandatory term of 5 years, up to 20 years, in federal prison for the distribution offense and up to 20 years in federal prison for the possession offense. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for September 19, 2023.

According to the plea agreement, law enforcement received a CyberTip regarding a user distributing child sex abuse images and videos on a social media platform. Further investigation revealed that McKie was the user who had uploaded the child sex abuse material. While executing a search warrant on McKie’s residence, law enforcement seized multiple electronic devices belonging to McKie, including a damaged laptop under McKie’s bed and an external hard drive broken into pieces behind a freezer. Law enforcement also found a folder containing McKie’s handwritten stories describing the sexual abuse of children between the ages of five and sixteen. A forensic examination of McKie’s devices revealed several videos and images of child sex abuse material. During an interview with law enforcement, McKie admitted to viewing and trading child sex abuse material.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Courtney Richardson-Jones.

This is another case brought as 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.justice.gov/psc.