Wood County Man Sentenced For Possessing Child Pornography

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Parkersburg, West Virginia man was sentenced yesterday to federal prison for a child pornography crime, announced United States Attorney Mike Stuart.  Craig Williams, 36,  was sentenced to 37 months in prison for the felony offense of possessing child pornography. Williams was also required to serve a term of supervised release of ten years.  He is also be required to register as a sex offender.  Stuart praised the investigative efforts of the Department of Homeland Security - Homeland Security Investigations and the West Virginia State Police.

“Child predators and child pornographers are monsters and true evidence of the existence of evil.  It’s always a good day when child pornographers like Williams are put behind bars,” said United States Attorney Mike Stuart.  “We must protect our children from exploitation and abuse.”

Williams previously pleaded guilty on April 18, 2018 to possession of child pornography.  Specifically, Williams told the Court that on February 19, 2015, he possessed on his computer pictures of prepubescent minors engaged in sex acts. Williams was using a web-based chatting service to access and download child pornography photographs. Williams received the pornographic pictures over the internet while he was living in Kentucky and they were still on his computer when he moved to and was living in Parkersburg, West Virginia.  In total, Williams admitted to possessing nearly 2000 images of minors engaged in sex acts, and that some of those images he possessed involved sadistic conduct directed toward the minors in the photographs.

Assistant United States Attorney Erik S. Goes is in charge of the prosecution. The sentencing hearing was held before United States District Judge Irene C. Berger.

This case is being prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative of the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

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