NEW BERN - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced that in federal court today STEVEN C. DAVIDSON, 36, of Pikeville, North Carolina, was sentenced to 180 months imprisonment followed by a lifetime of supervised release by United States District Judge Louise W. Flanagan, for one count of receipt of child pornography.
DAVIDSON was previously a member of the United States Air Force assigned as an Air Traffic Controller at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base at the time of his offense. On Jan. 13, 2016 DAVIDSON pled guilty to the charge.
On November 5, 2014, the Air Force Office of Special Investigations at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base (SJAFB) in Goldsboro, North Carolina, initiated an investigation after a government computer was utilized to conduct online searches for material related to child exploitation and child pornography (CP). The individual was subsequently identified as DAVIDSON, a Staff Sergeant in the United States Air Force (USAF), based on his military login credentials. On Nov. 19, 2014, agents seized four government computers that DAVIDSON accessed within the past year. On the same date, agents conducted a search of the defendant’s residence and seized a computer. Based on the investigation, DAVIDSON used a computer to receive, trade, and store CP. Forensic examination uncovered at least 720 images and 30 videos depicting CP.
The criminal investigation of this case was conducted by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) and the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Ethan A. Ontjes is handling the prosecution on behalf of the Eastern District of North Carolina.
This case was part of the Project Safe Childhood initiative, a national program aimed at ensuring that criminals exploiting children are effectively prosecuted by making full use of all available law enforcement resources at every level. For more information about this important national project, Project Safe Childhood, go to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
