BLUEFIELD, W.Va. – A McDowell County man was sentenced today to 22 and one-half years in prison, to be followed by 25 years of supervised release, for production of child pornography. Timothy Edwards, 25, of Yaeger, must also register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Edwards admitted that from April 2020 through February 2021 he engaged in sexual abuse of a 12-year-old girl. During that time frame, Edwards produced multiple videos of himself engaged in sexual intercourse with the minor child. He also directed the minor child to produce and send sexually explicit videos of herself to him. Edwards additionally caused the minor child to engage in live video chats during which she would send video of herself masturbating.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the West Virginia State Police and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Rada Herrald prosecuted the case.
This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative of the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:21-cr-186.
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