Hampton man sentenced to 20 years in prison for coercing minors to produce child sexual abuse material

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - A Hampton man was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for the coercion and enticement of two minors.

According to court documents, on March 7, 2020, Yahmir Deshawn Kawante Hamlet, 25, uploaded a video file with advertising links to child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in exchange for payments.

On Dec. 6, 2023, FBI investigators searched Hamlet's residence and seized seven electronic devices containing approximately 425 image files and 122 video files of CSAM, as well as MEGA and Dropbox links and multiple Telegram chats negotiating sales of CSAM. The CSAM files included infants and toddlers, masochism, and bestiality. The devices also included sexually explicit conversations between Hamlet and two minors. Hamlet paid the minors for sexually explicit images and videos.

After Hamlet's arrest on May 1, 2025, the FBI identified additional CSAM, including 30 images and five videos.

The FBI's Norfolk Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Bedford County Sheriff's Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter G. Osyf prosecuted the case.

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. Attorney's 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 https://www.justice.gov/psc.

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 are located on the website of the District CourtLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACERLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. by searching for Case No. 4:25-cr-36.