Justin Bradley Durham, Child Sex, Pornography, Missouri 2024

Justin Bradley Durham, Child Sex, Pornography, Missouri 2024

A former deputy sheriff from Phelps County, Missouri, has been indicted on charges that accuse him of soliciting and possessing child pornography. The indictment also alleges that Justin Bradley Durham, 42, induced and enticed an underage girl to engage in sexually explicit conduct and record it.

According to the indictment, between roughly December 2013 and December 2014, Durham induced and enticed an underage girl to engage in sexually explicit conduct and record it. Durham possessed explicit images of the girl during those same dates, the indictment says, as well as a second girl between about Dec. 9, 2017, and July 2, 2018.

The indictment charges Durham with one count of sexual exploitation of children, two counts of possession of child pornography, and two counts of altering or destroying records. If convicted, he faces a penalty of at least 15 years in prison for the sexual exploitation of children charge, between 5 and 20 years in prison for each of the child pornography charges, and up to 20 years in prison for each of the altering or destroying records charges.

Durham is expected to appear in U.S. District Court in St. Louis on Friday. During the investigation, additional women have come forward with allegations about Durham, including allegations involving his demands for sex or sexually explicit images after making traffic stops.

Anyone with information about Durham should call the FBI at 314-589-2500. The case was investigated by the FBI and the Missouri State Highway Patrol, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman is prosecuting the case.

Durham's indictment is 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 U.S. government. The project 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.

The indictment says that Durham offered the first victim money for explicit pictures and later paid her $200 to come to his house, where they engaged in sexual activity. Durham met the second victim when he responded to a call for police assistance, the motion says.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edmo/pr/former-phelps-county-deputy-indicted-child-sex-pornography-charges