Williamsburg man pleads guilty for sending threat to police officer that included images of child sexual abuse

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – A Williamsburg man pled guilty today to distributing obscene visual representations of the sexual abuse of children.

According to court documents, on Feb. 14 and 15, a police officer made contact with Xavier Joseph Stafford, 22, and asked Stafford to remove his vehicle from private property in Williamsburg. On Feb. 18, Stafford sent an email to the officer in which Stafford threatened to rape the officer’s daughter. Stafford included two animated images depicting child sexual abuse. The email also included a live photo repeatedly looping several frames of consecutive images of the officer’s home.

Stafford is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 4. He faces a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 20 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 considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Dominique Evans, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office, made the announcement after U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert J. Krask accepted the plea.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Therese O'Brien is prosecuting the case.

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.

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. 4:25-cr-40.