ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Manassas Park man pleaded guilty today to producing and distributing child pornography.

According to court documents, Michael Gerald Moody, 44, admitted that, between 2017 and February 2018, he used a child to engage in sexually explicit conduct and he captured numerous images of that conduct with his cell phone. In addition, Moody engaged in text chats with other individuals through the online messaging application Kik Messenger. These chats principally focused on the exchange of images of child sexual abuse and discussions of the sexual abuse of children. In the course of these chats, Moody distributed child pornography, including images that he himself produced, as well as other images, to at least eight other individuals.

Moody pleaded guilty to two counts of producing child pornography and one count of distributing child pornography and faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison when sentenced on September 14. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Tracy Doherty-McCormick, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, John P. Cronan, Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, and Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, made the announcement after U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady accepted the plea. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay V. Prabhu and Trial Attorney Kyle P. Reynolds of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section are prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:18-cr-170.