A former Virginia Tech communications professor, Michael Horning, has been sentenced to 60 months in federal prison for possession of child pornography. Horning, aged 51 and residing in Christiansburg, Virginia, pleaded guilty in September 2024 to possessing visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Court documents reveal that Horning downloaded child pornography between 2009 and 2021 using peer-to-peer file-sharing software such as Freenet. When his electronic devices were seized in December 2021, authorities found him in possession of 663 images and fourteen videos depicting child pornography. The materials included thirty-eight images and one video involving infants or toddlers, along with a video depicting sadomasochism.

The case was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Zachary T. Lee and Stanley M. Meador, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Division. The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation while Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Scheff prosecuted the case.

This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse through coordinated efforts at federal, state, and local levels.