Show-Me State Times

A DeSoto, Missouri man pleaded guilty Thursday to federal child pornography charges involving three victims. Dylan James, 25, admitted to one count of production of child pornography and one count of distribution of child pornography.

James acknowledged recording a sexual act with a 13-year-old in 2024 and distributing the recording. Investigators found evidence on his phone related to two additional victims. According to authorities, the second victim was 15 years old and told investigators that James gave her alcohol and “possibly some vapes” in exchange for sexually explicit images. The third victim was 16 when James watched a livestream of her engaging in sex acts with her boyfriend; he later paid her for more videos, as detailed in the plea agreement.

James is scheduled for sentencing on December 2. The production charge has a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison, while the distribution charge carries a possible penalty ranging from five to twenty years.

The case was investigated by the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, St. Louis County Police Department, and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Hayes is prosecuting.

According to the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood initiative (www.justice.gov/psc), federal agencies are working together with state and local partners nationwide to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children online while also seeking to identify and rescue victims.

“This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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.”