A Newport News man was sentenced to 15 years in prison for distributing child sexual abuse material, according to court documents.
David Christopher Schaefer, 38, was convicted of possession of child sexual abuse material in 2015 and was sentenced to over eight years in prison and a life term of supervised release.
Among the conditions of supervision were a restriction to use only computers or cellular devices approved by the Probation Office. Schaefer was allowed to have a flip phone without access to the Internet and a laptop computer with installed monitoring.
Law enforcement notified Schaefer’s probation officer that Schaefer was issued a summons on March 21, 2025, in the City of Newport News for texting and driving. Probation officers searched Schaefer’s residence and located six unauthorized Internet-capable devices and three unreported storage drives.
Among these were three smartphones, which Schaefer admitted to using to access, view, download, and exchange child sexual abuse material. On one of the phones, investigators found hundreds of images and videos of child sexual abuse material.
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, D.C., investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa R. McKeel prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.
Defendant: David Christopher Schaefer
Criminal Charges: Distribution of child sexual abuse material
City and State: Newport News, Virginia
Date: March 31, 2015 (conviction), March 21, 2025 (arrest)
Sentence: 15 years in prison
Related Federal Cases
- Lucas Fussell, Distributing Child Sexual Abuse Material, Virginia 2024 · Texas
- Kevin Javon Taylor, Receiving and Storing Child Sex Abuse Material, Virginia 2021 · Virginia
- James Kent, Child Sexual Abuse, West Virginia 2024 · Maryland
- Joseph Downing Barnes Jr., Child Porn Distribution, Virginia 2023 · Virginia
- William Rhodes, Child Pornography Distribution, Virginia 2023 · Tennessee
Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Category: Sex Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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