Registered Sex Offender Pleads Guilty to Destroying an iPad and Hard Drive that Contained Evidence of his Attempts to Collect Child Pornography

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – David Michael Fioramonti, 42, of Purcellville, Virginia, pleaded guilty today to obstruction of justice related to evidence of child pornography.

Dana J. Boente, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Joseph R. Price, Chief of the Town of Leesburg Police Department; and Andrew G. McCabe, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady.

According to documents filed with the Court, on December 31, 2013, several officers with the Leesburg Police Department observed Fioramonti in his car in the parking lot of a Sheetz gas station in Leesburg, Virginia.  Fioramonti was using his iPad to access the Internet using Sheetz’s unsecured public WIFI.  The officers determined that Fioramonti was a registered sex offender, and he was not allowed to access the Internet from an unapproved device.  They approached Fioramonti and requested the iPad, but Fioramonti refused.  He then began hitting the iPad on the gear shift of the vehicle, shattering the screen.  He was arrested by the Leesburg Police Department and subsequently released. After failing to appear in court, an arrest warrant was issued for Fioramonti.  

On February 11, 2014, Maryland State Police Officers encountered Fioramonti in a hotel room in Frederick, Maryland.  Fioramonti barricaded himself in his hotel room and stated he had a weapon.  While in the hotel room, Fioramonti removed the hard drive from his Toshiba laptop and destroyed it.  The black hard drive had contained evidence of Fioramonti’s attempts to collect child pornography as well as information, such as screen names and IP addresses, of individuals who collect and share child pornography on the Internet.

Fioramonti was charged in a superseding information on October 17, 2014, with the obstruction of justice in violation.  Pursuant to his guilty plea, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison when he is sentenced on February 6, 2015. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

This case was investigated by the Town of Leesburg Police Department and the FBI’s Washington Field Office.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Gardner is prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:14-cr-309.