Callaway man who allegedly paid for “live child sexual abuse videos” of minors in the Philippines Charged with Child Exploitation Offenses

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - A Callaway County, Mo., man was charged with nine counts of attempted production of child pornography.

David Lee Maddox, 59, was charged by indictment with nine counts of attempted production of child pornography on Aug. 5, 2025. The charges were made public today following the arrest and first appearance in court by Maddox.

The investigation began on Aug. 8, 2023, when the St. Louis Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) office received a referral from HSI Portland, Me pertaining to the defendant's apparent communication via Microsoft Skype with known traffickers/sellers of live and recorded child sexual abuse videos operating in the Philippines. The investigation showed defendant used Skype to receive "shows" from minor victims in the Philippines and paid for the shows by sending money via money transmittal services. From on or about Sept. 20, 2021, through Dec. 23, 2023, the defendant received "shows" depicting underage females on approximately 20 occasions.

The charges contained in the indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

Under federal statutes, if convicted, Maddox faces a federal prison sentence of up to 30 years on each count to be served without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is provided by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley Turner. It was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with assistance from Holts Summit, MO Police department and Missouri State Technical Assistance Team (STAT).

Project Safe Childhood

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 the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."