William S. Thompson U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia
Ampless Ray Lilly, a 52-year-old resident of Huntington, West Virginia, has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography. Court documents reveal that between February 20, 2023, and April 23, 2024, Lilly received around 2,900 images and 1,100 videos containing child pornography on his mobile phone while accessing the internet from his residence. He admitted that the material included depictions of prepubescent minors in sexually explicit conduct and minors subjected to sadistic or violent acts. Lilly also confessed to distributing these images and videos online.
Lilly is scheduled for sentencing on June 5, 2025. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years in prison with a potential maximum of twenty years. Additionally, he may receive at least five years up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of $250,000.
Previously convicted for first-degree sexual assault in Lincoln County Circuit Court on January 22, 1993, Lilly is already a registered sex offender. During the current offense period, he was serving a five-year probation term starting November 13, 2023, after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm on August 14, 2023. A petition to revoke this probation has been filed and is under review.
Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston praised the investigative efforts of the West Virginia State Police. The hearing was overseen by United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers with Assistant United States Attorney Gabriel Price handling prosecution duties.
The case falls under Project Safe Childhood—an initiative led by the Department of Justice aiming to tackle child sexual exploitation and abuse through federal collaboration with state and local resources. This initiative strives to locate offenders and protect victims across the nation.
For more details about Project Safe Childhood visit www.justice.gov/psc. Related court documents are available on PACER under Case No. 3:25-cr-15.
