The Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested Steven Wayne Erickson, a Pulaski County Work Report Program Coordinator and current member of the Pulaski Town Council, on July 23. Erickson, 48, was charged with one count of receipt and one count of distribution of child sexual abuse material.
According to court records, the FBI received a cyber tip about possible child sexual exploitation occurring over Kik, a messaging app. Through search warrants and other legal processes, agents found that Erickson used two Kik accounts extensively. Records from Kik revealed several instances where Erickson solicited and shared child sexual abuse material with other users.
In 2025, an individual identified as “Cravt” sent nearly 100 photos to Erickson featuring elementary-aged minors. The complaint alleges that Erickson encouraged Cravt to use artificial intelligence to transform these images into sexually explicit content. In October 2025, Cravt sent AI-generated abusive images of minors to Erickson, who then responded by sending videos of himself masturbating to the material.
The criminal complaint further details interactions between Erickson and multiple users where he allegedly exchanged sexually explicit materials involving minors or encouraged others to create such content using artificial intelligence tools. In several cases throughout early 2026, these exchanges included hidden camera footage and photographs taken without minors’ awareness.
First Assistant United States Attorney Robert N. Tracci for the Western District of Virginia and Ian Kaufmann, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Division, announced the arrest. Assistant U.S. Attorney Drew O. Inman is prosecuting the case.
The case is part of Project Safe Childhood—a nationwide initiative led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section—which aims to protect children from exploitation through coordinated efforts among federal, state, and local agencies.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation; defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court proceedings.
The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia handles federal prosecutions and civil litigation for western Virginia communities as part of its mission within the Department of Justice; it partners with law enforcement agencies at all levels from offices located across Roanoke, Charlottesville, Abingdon, Lynchburg, Danville and Harrisonburg to promote public safety initiatives, according to the official website.