Oahu Man Sentenced to 22 Years in Prison for Producing Child Pornography

HONOLULU - United States Attorney Ken Sorenson announced that David Yamamoto, 28, of Waipahu, Hawaii, was sentenced yesterday by United States District Judge Shanlyn A.S. Park to 264 months in federal prison for the production of child pornography, followed by 10 years of supervised release. District Judge Park remanded Yamamoto into custody immediately at the end of sentencing.

According to court records, from in or around 2023 to 2025, Yamamoto used online gaming and messaging applications to find and groom children located in the United States and in foreign countries to send him sexually explicit videos and images of themselves. Yamamoto misrepresented his age by posing as a teenager on gaming applications geared towards teens and preteens. He then offered and sent money and gifts to over ten children as payment for engaging in sexually explicit live stream video calls with him and for sending sexually explicit imagery of themselves at his direction.

Yamamoto exchanged tens of thousands of online messages with minors, ranging in age from ten to seventeen years old. In messaging minors, he directed them to expose their genitals in particular poses or insert objects into their genitals, create sexually explicit videos involving urination and masturbation, and recreate images of explicit adult pornography that he had sent to the minors.

"The devastating harm Yamamoto inflicted on his numerous victims can never be undone, but his 22-year sentence sends a potent message that those who prey upon our children will face harsh penalties in federal court," said U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson. "Along with our steadfast partners at FBI, we will continue to hunt down child predators like Yamamoto and bring them to justice."

"This sentence sends a clear message to any individuals who exploit children online: the FBI will find you, and you will face justice," said FBI Honolulu Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryan C. Noonan. "Yamamoto preyed on minors by hiding behind technology, but his actions did not go unseen. The FBI and our federal partners remain steadfast in our mission to safeguard children and to pursue those who would harm them, wherever they are and however they operate."

The FBI investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca A. Perlmutter prosecuted the case.

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.