Robert Upchurch, a 52-year-old resident of Charlotte, North Carolina, has been sentenced to 54 months in prison and a lifetime of supervised release for possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). This was announced by Dena J. King, the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. In addition to his prison sentence, Upchurch is required to pay a $17,000 special assessment under the Amy, Vicky, and Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act of 2018.
The announcement was made with Robert M. DeWitt, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Charlotte Division, and Chief Johnny Jennings of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) joining U.S. Attorney King.
According to court documents and information presented at the sentencing hearing, law enforcement received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in July 2022 regarding a Dropbox account user uploading images suspected to be CSAM. The investigation identified Upchurch as the account holder. A search warrant executed at his residence on December 8, 2022, led to the seizure of electronic devices that contained over 5,800 images and 2,500 videos depicting child sexual abuse. These materials included content involving infants and toddlers as well as files depicting sadistic or masochistic behavior or violence involving young children. Initially denying possession during an interview with law enforcement, Upchurch later admitted to viewing child pornography.
On September 4, 2024, Upchurch entered a guilty plea to charges of possession and accessing with intent to view child pornography involving minors under the age of twelve.
The case was investigated by both the FBI and CMPD. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nick J. Miller prosecuted on behalf of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse nationwide. The project coordinates federal, state, and local resources to locate offenders who exploit children online while also identifying and rescuing victims.
For more details about Project Safe Childhood visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
