Former U.S. Navy Ship Department Head Pleads Guilty to Attempted Production of Child Pornography

NORFOLK, Va. – A Chesapeake man pleaded guilty today to attempted production of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

According to court documents, around October 2022, Christopher Paul Hetherington, 33, initiated sexually explicit conversation over the Internet with who he believed to be a 14-year-old girl, but who was actually an undercover law enforcement officer. Hetherington used a screen name of “sw0daddy” in his communications with the girl, referencing his then-employment as a Surface Warfare Officer for the U.S. Navy. Hetherington repeatedly asked the girl to send him sexually explicit photos of her and asked for reassurance that she was not affiliated with law enforcement. Over the phone, Hetherington detailed the sexual acts he wished to perform on and with her. After the call concluded, Hetherington encouraged the girl to show him her genitals over the Internet. In December 2022, Hetherington made plans to meet with the girl for sex. Instead, Hetherington was arrested at his home on December 21, 2022.

Hetherington is scheduled to be sentenced on August 9, 2023. He faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years and a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison. 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.

Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Mack Hickman, Special Agent in Charge of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Norfolk Field Office, made the announcement after U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert J. Krask accepted the plea.

Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Victoria Liu is prosecuting the case.

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 the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 https://www.justice.gov/psc.

In 2021, EDVA launched “UnMasked,” a community-based educational outreach and prevention program in Virginia dedicated to raising awareness and educating the community about the prevalence of online sexual exploitation involving children and young adults. UnMasked is a multi-disciplinary partnership of local, state, federal, and non-profit stakeholders. The core curriculum is provided by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s (NCMEC) NetSmartz program. To report an incident involving online sexual exploitation, call 1-800-843-5678 or submit a report at report.cybertip.org. To request an UnMasked event at your school or organization, please contact EDVA’s Community Outreach Coordinator at USAVAE-UnMasked@usdoj.gov.

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 are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:23-cr-26.