Michael Peyton Gunn Convicted in Child Sex Trafficking Horror

AUGUSTA, GA — Michael Peyton Gunn, 36, of Evans, Ga., was convicted Thursday by a federal jury on nine counts tied to the prolonged sexual exploitation of a child victim beginning at age 7. The verdict, delivered just after 5 p.m. on Nov. 18, caps a four-day trial that exposed a chilling pattern of abuse, manipulation, and commercial sex trafficking orchestrated by Gunn over several years.

Gunn was found guilty of Conspiracy to Engage in Sex Trafficking of a Minor; Sex Trafficking of a Child; Coercion and Enticement of a Minor to Engage in Sexual Activity; four counts of Production of Child Pornography; Possession of Child Pornography; and Obstruction of a Sex-Trafficking Investigation. Three of the charges carry a statutory maximum of life in prison. He faces a minimum of 15 years behind bars, with no chance of parole under federal sentencing rules.

Acting U.S. Attorney David H. Estes called the crimes “absolutely horrific,” stating the abuse went far beyond the initial child pornography offenses that first drew FBI attention. “The jurors are holding Michael Gunn accountable for his monstrous crimes, and providing a path to healing for his victim,” Estes said in a statement following the verdict.

The victim, now a teenager, testified in graphic detail how Gunn used rewards, threats, and intimidation to force them into producing child pornography and later engaging in commercial sex acts. The abuse began when the victim was just 7 and escalated through age 13. Gunn profited by selling images and making the child available to other men for sex, court evidence revealed.

The case emerged in February 2020 when FBI agents in Texas discovered over 700 images of child pornography tied to a specific minor, with geolocation data pointing to Gunn’s home in Evans. A search of his residence led to his March 2020 indictment. The probe later expanded, resulting in a March 2021 superseding indictment that added sex trafficking charges and implicated his then-wife, Amanda Gunn, 34, of Augusta, a/k/a “Amanda Howard.” She has since pleaded guilty to Sex Trafficking Conspiracy and awaits sentencing.

Jonathan Eugene Grantham, 45, of Graniteville, S.C., also testified. A former high school teacher, Grantham admitted to responding to an online ad trafficking the victim, then traveling from South Carolina to Evans to engage in a sex act for payment. He pleaded guilty in August to Coercion and Enticement of a Minor and awaits sentencing. The FBI continues its investigation into additional individuals potentially involved in the exploitation network.