A Kansas City, Missouri, man, registered as a sex offender, was sentenced in federal court for his involvement in distributing child pornography.
Charles M. Witter, 33, received a 25-year sentence in federal prison without the possibility of parole from U.S. District Judge Greg Kays. Post-incarceration, Witter is mandated to undergo a lifetime of supervised release.
On July 26, 2023, Witter entered a guilty plea to multiple charges: one count of distributing child pornography over the internet on October 5, 2020, one count of transporting child pornography from November 12, 2020, to January 11, 2021, and one count of possessing child pornography from November 12, 2020, to March 16, 2021. These offenses occurred after Witter’s previous conviction for aggravated sexual abuse involving a minor. Witter’s criminal history includes felony convictions for statutory rape and statutory sodomy, both involving the sexual abuse of a 12-year-old child.
Following his release from state prison on February 25, 2020, after serving six years for these prior convictions, Witter was back to criminal activities in less than eight months. He used a social media application to disseminate child pornography.
Witter admitted to sending an image of child pornography through a social media application on October 5, 2020. This image was subsequently flagged, leading to a CyberTip report to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which then alerted the Western Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force.
On January 20, 2021, another CyberTip report was filed by an online service provider, pointing to Witter’s involvement in sending emails containing 113 images of child pornography and child erotica from November 12, 2020, to January 11, 2021.
A search of Witter’s cell phone by investigators revealed 53 images of child pornography, three videos, and 10 GIF files of the same nature.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Maureen A. Brackett and Kenneth W. Borgnino. Agencies involved in the investigation included Homeland Security Investigations and the Platte County, Missouri, Sheriff’s Department.
