ALEXANDRIA, VA – Raymond Lee Chavez, 70, of Purcellville, Virginia, will spend the next two decades behind bars after being sentenced today for a sickening scheme to sexually exploit children. Chavez was convicted of purchasing livestreamed abuse and possessing a massive collection of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Court documents reveal Chavez, a consultant specializing in climate change who worked with international organizations including the United Nations, spent years funding the abuse of five prepubescent children in the Philippines. Between April 2017 and April 2022, Chavez paid for at least 15 livestreaming webcam shows depicting the sexual exploitation of these children, directly from their abusers. He didn’t just watch; Chavez actively recorded segments with his cell phone, saving the horrific videos on external hard drives.
The arrangement wasn’t passive viewing. Chavez communicated directly with the traffickers, arranging show times, negotiating payments, and, disturbingly, dictating the acts he wanted performed. Before each livestream, Chavez demanded a preview, a video call where the trafficker would present the child and confirm they would comply with his depraved requests. He even specified details like makeup and “sexy stockings.” During the abuse, Chavez continued to communicate, offering instructions on what he wanted to see. The scale of his depravity is staggering.
A March 1, 2023, search of Chavez’s residence uncovered six electronic devices containing over 5,000 images and videos of CSAM, collected between February 2003 and July 2022. This included graphic depictions of toddlers and other young, vulnerable children being abused. But the horror didn’t stop at the digital realm. Investigators also discovered Chavez’s internet searches for child prostitution and sex tourism, including searches for “child prostitution in cambodia 2012.” His passport confirmed a trip to Cambodia in July-August 2012.
“This case represents a horrific example of the exploitation of vulnerable children,” said Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Derek W. Gordon, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, D.C. U.S. District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles handed down the 20-year sentence. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Halper prosecuted the case.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative dedicated to combating child sexual exploitation. The Department of Justice, through this project, coordinates federal, state, and local resources to identify, apprehend, and prosecute predators like Raymond Chavez, and to rescue the victims of their crimes. More information on Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.justice.gov/psc. Court documents related to Case No. 1:23-cr-180 can be found on the U.S. Attorney’s Office website for the Eastern District of Virginia and on PACER.
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Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Sex Crimes|Cybercrime|Human Trafficking
- Source: Official Source ↗
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