John Thomas Matthew Lee, Child Pornography, Delaware 2016

Former U.S. Navy Lt. Commander and Catholic Priest Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charges

A former U.S. Navy Lt. Commander and ordained Catholic priest has pleaded guilty to child pornography charges in Delaware.

John Thomas Matthew Lee, 50, of Millsboro, Delaware, pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography and one count of distribution of child pornography on March 2, 2016, in U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware.

Lee is a registered sex offender following his 2007 conviction in a general court martial of sexually assaulting another Naval officer. Lee has been in custody since his arrest on November 3, 2014.

According to the investigation, Lee used his phone to induce several juveniles to send him pornographic images of themselves via online messenger applications and text messages. He then uploaded at least one of these images to a publicly accessible social media site and traded other images of child pornography online with other adults.

The investigation was conducted by ICE-HSI Resident in Charge Wilmington, Delaware, with assistance from several other ICE-HSI regional offices to locate and interview the juvenile victims.

This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Herbrina D. Sanders of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward J. McAndrew of the District of Delaware.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/former-us-navy-lt-commander-and-catholic-priest-pleads-guilty-child-pornography-charges