NORFOLK, Va. – A man pleaded guilty Friday to his role in producing images of child sexual abuse and attempting to meet a minor for sex.
According to court documents, 33-year-old Bryan Wesley Petitt, engaged in sexually explicit communications with an undercover agent he believed to be a 14-year-old minor.
Petitt drove from Charlottesville to military housing in Norfolk in order to engage in sex with the girl, officials say.
Officers discovered images of child sexual abuse on his phone at the time of his arrest. Investigators later learned that Petitt produced one of the images.
Petitt pleaded guilty to production of child pornography and attempted coercion and enticement of a minor. He faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 50 years in prison when sentenced on December 14.
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.
