Christopher Welcher, Child Enticement, Georgia 2025

Child Enticement Case Rocks Northwest Georgia

Rome, GA - In a shocking turn of events, a convicted sex offender and a Bartow County man have pleaded guilty to federal child enticement and evidence tampering charges in the Northern District of Georgia. U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg handled the court proceedings himself.

According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges stem from a series of events that unfolded in March 2025. On March 4, 2025, Christopher Welcher, a registered sex offender who served more than six years in federal prison, exchanged sexually explicit text messages with an undercover law enforcement officer he believed to be a 14-year-old girl. Welcher told the undercover officer that he “happen[s] to think that 14 is the perfect age [for] kissing, talking, sexting, having sex, and more.”

Welcher encouraged the purported 14-year-old to skip school so he could engage in sexual conduct that would constitute aggravated child molestation under Georgia law. Welcher then drove to Floyd County, Georgia to meet the girl near a public high school. Police arrested Welcher upon his arrival at the meeting location and seized his cell phone. A subsequent search of the cell phone revealed hundreds of images of child sex abuse.

On March 12, 2025, Welcher called his wife, Connie Thompson, from the Floyd County Jail. The call was recorded. Welcher and Thompson discussed a plan for Thompson to destroy electronic devices at their home in Grantville, Georgia. Thompson told Welcher, “I’m fixing to bust the f*** out of” the devices, at least one of which contained pornographic images Welcher possessed in violation of his conditions of supervised release.

FBI promptly obtained a warrant to search Thompson’s home, but, by the time agents arrived, Thompson had already smashed two digital storage drives and discarded them in the kitchen trashcan. Law enforcement recovered the damaged devices from the trashcan but could not repair them.

The enticement charges to which Welcher, 45, and Cooper, William Eric Cooper, pleads guilty to include child enticement, using interstate commerce to entice a minor, and tampering with evidence. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and supervised release for life.

The GBI remains dedicated to protecting the most vulnerable members of our communities and ensuring offenders face justice. We will continue working alongside our partners to safeguard children from those who seek to exploit them. These guilty pleas send a clear message: those who prey on children will be held accountable.

The FBI will remain vigilant and continue our active role to ensure children are protected and justice is sought for victims. Child exploitation is a federal crime, and the FBI is committed to investigating and prosecuting these cases to the fullest extent of the law.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga/pr/coweta-county-sex-offender-and-bartow-county-man-plead-guilty-child-enticement-crimes