Cabarrus County Man Sentenced for Distribution and Production of Child Pornography

GREENSBORO – A North Carolina man was sentenced on September 28, 2021, to 600 months in prison, followed by a lifetime term of supervised release, for production and distribution of child pornography.

Adam Chase Wallace, 25, was indicted by superseding indictment in February, 2021, on four counts of production of child pornography, one count of distribution of child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography. He later pleaded guilty to one count of both production and distribution on May 20, 2021.

According to court documents, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Newark notified Special Agents with HSI Charlotte that they received information from an individual regarding a contact he knew as “Adam” who was filming himself abusing two minors and producing and sharing illegal content. An undercover agent continued communicating with the individual and gathered evidence that Wallace was producing and distributing child pornography. Using social media account information, verified through commercial and law enforcement databases, Special Agents identified Wallace as the likely perpetrator and executed a search warrant for his electronic devices.    A computer forensic expert located more than one thousand images of child pornography on Wallace’s devices, including images he produced with the two minors.  Wallace admitted to producing images and videos of his abuse to law enforcement shortly after his arrest.

"Finding and arresting perpetrators, like Wallace, that prey upon innocent children is a crucial part of our mission to protect the homeland," said Special Agent in Charge Ronnie Martinez, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in North Carolina and South Carolina. “HSI and its law enforcement partners will continue to target these predators and bring them to justice."

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kennedy Gates and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole R. DuPre.

The case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat online child sexual exploitation and abuse. The initiative is led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), and focuses on coordinating federal, state, and local resources to better identify 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.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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