NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — A man who was formerly a lieutenant with the Newport News Fire Department was sentenced on Tuesday to over 33 years in prison for coercion and enticement of a child and receipt of child sexual abuse, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said.
According to court documents, in February of last year, 43-year-old Christopher Scott Jones used the internet to "entice and coerce a minor to engage in sexual activity." When investigating this crime, the FBI discovered several children who may have been victims of Jones' conduct.
Three more minors disclosed that they had had sexually explicit contact with Jones. One minor disclosed that he had engaged in sexual behavior over the course of nine months.
Examinations of his devices and lawful searches of his accounts confirmed the illicit relationships.
Then in July of 2022, Jones traveled to meet an undercover individual posing as a 12-year-old for sex.
On May 18 of this year, he pleaded guilty to "using a communication facility to knowingly persuade, induce, entice, and coerce a minor to engage in sexual activity." He also pleaded guilty to receiving child pornography.
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.