Tallahassee, Florida - David Carlton Lee, 60, of Panama City Beach, Florida, pleaded guilty to one count of transportation of child pornography, one count of access with intent to view child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography. John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida announced the plea.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: "This successful prosecution was made possible thanks to the excellent investigative work of the agents and officers of Homeland Security Investigations and the Panama City Beach Police Department who are committed to bringing to justice every sexual predator who accesses and distributes child sexual abuse material. The hundreds of horrific images found on the defendant's devices had the effect of revictimizing the innocent children who were sexually exploited each and every time they were accessed and distributed, and these heinous crimes deserve severe punishment."

Court documents reflect that, in August 2025, law enforcement received a report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children regarding multiple uploads of child sexual abuse material to an online platform. Further investigation revealed the uploads occurred from the defendant's email address. A search warrant was executed at the defendant's Panama City Beach residence, where several electronic devices were seized and subsequent analysis discovered nearly 400 images constituting child sexual abuse material.

Lee faces a mandatory minimum of five years' imprisonment and up to 20 years in prison. He also faces up to a lifetime of supervision upon release.

Sentencing is scheduled for January 14, 2027, at the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida before United States District Judge Mark E. Walker.

The case was jointly investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Panama City Beach Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christie S. Utt.

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 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 Justice.gov/PSC.

The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation's principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of FloridaLinks 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. website. For more information about the United States Attorney's Office, Northern District of Florida, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndfl.