ROANOKE, VA. — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Virginia, Western), published as received.
ROANOKE, Va. – A Buchanan, Virginia, man, who exposed the genitals of a minor female during a party at his residence and took pictures of the victim on his cellphone, pled guilty last week to related federal charges.
Christopher Buono, 45, pled guilty to one count of child sexual exploitation and one count of possession of child pornography.
According to court documents, in January 2024 a party was hosted the defendant’s home in Buchanan, Virginia. At one point in the evening, Buono and a minor female, who was approximately six-years-old at the time, went to Buono’s game room, and either the minor victim or Buono pulled down her pants and underwear, exposing her genitals.
Buono then used his cellphone to take sexually explicit photographs of the minor victim. Later that night, Buono used a messaging application to send one of these photos to another individual with a sexual interest in minors.
At sentencing, Buono faces a maximum of forty years in federal prison.
Acting United States Attorney Zachary T. Lee announced the guilty plea.
The investigation was conducted by the Department of Homeland Security with assistance from the Botetourt County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Scheff is prosecuting the case.
The case is brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identity and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.
