Convicted Sex Offender Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charge

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Fairfax man who is a registered sex offender pleaded guilty today to downloading images of child sexual abuse.

According to court documents, Christopher James Tator, 31, was discovered by the FBI Washington Field Office’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force making child pornography files available over an Internet file-sharing network. A computer forensic examination of devices seized from Tator’s residence during a search warrant revealed that he had used a computer to download child pornography videos from a Dropbox cloud storage account.  Tator’s devices also contained hundreds of thumbnail images of children being sexually abused, many of which depicted the sexual abuse of infants. Tator is a registered sex offender as a result of a 2010 Prince William County conviction of attempting to take indecent liberties with children.

Tator pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography by person with a prior conviction relating to aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse, or abusive sexual conduct involving a minor. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum sentence of 40 years when sentenced on November 2. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (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. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, made the announcement after Senior U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III accepted the plea. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle P. Reynolds is prosecuting the case.

The FBI Washington Field Office’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force is comprised of agents of the FBI, U.S. Marshals, and detectives from the Prince William County Police, Fairfax County Police, Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office, Metropolitan Police, Alexandria City Police, Arlington County Police, Leesburg Police, Virginia State Police and the Offices of Inspector General of several federal agencies.  

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:18-cr-294.