A federal judge has sentenced Christopher Skipper, 39, of Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, to 17 years in prison for distributing and possessing child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Skipper had previously pleaded guilty to these charges while on federal supervised release for an earlier child pornography conviction. The sentence includes 210 months in prison for the CSAM offenses, an additional 18 months for violating supervision terms, and five years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle stated, “Our office will continue to protect children and prosecute child predators who exploit and abuse the most vulnerable members of our community. If you hurt children this way, we will find you and hold you accountable for the endless revictimization that these children face. We will put you in federal prison for as long as possible to protect our communities and children.”
Cardell T. Morant, Special Agent in Charge at Homeland Security Investigations Charlotte, commented on the sentencing: “Let this sentencing serve as a stark warning: Homeland Security Investigations and our law enforcement partners will stop at nothing to identify, investigate, and bring to justice those who exploit and harm our children. The depraved actions of individuals like this defendant will not go unanswered. We will continue to work tirelessly to protect the most innocent among us and ensure that predators face the full consequences of their crimes.”
Court documents indicate that in fall 2024, the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office received a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding Skipper’s activities online. Investigators found that he used a Kik social media account to distribute CSAM. A search revealed numerous exchanges involving explicit images and statements expressing sexual interest in children.
On June 27, 2024, Skipper shared images and videos with another Kik user depicting child sexual abuse; one video showed a young girl being assaulted by an adult male. Authorities linked these actions directly to his residence.
During sentencing proceedings, it was noted that more than 700 videos of CSAM were discovered on Skipper’s phone along with explicit communications indicating ongoing interest in minors.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood—a national initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006—to address online child exploitation by coordinating efforts among federal prosecutors’ offices and agencies such as CEOS. The program works with state and local authorities both to pursue offenders using digital platforms for exploitation purposes and rescue affected victims (https://www.justice.gov/psc).
The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle following sentencing by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. The case was investigated by multiple agencies including the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations, and North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation; Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel P. Bubar prosecuted.
