CHARLESTON, W.VA. — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - West Virginia, Southern), published as received.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Kenneth McCord, 56, of Charleston, pleaded guilty today to production of child pornography.

According to court documents and statements made in court, between on or about March 4, 2024, and on or about February 4, 2025, McCord communicated using his phone with a 15-year-old male resident of California via text messages, other online messaging, and video-calling platforms. As part of his guilty plea, McCord admitted that he knew the individual was a minor male, that he persuaded and enticed the 15-year-old to send him sexually explicit images and videos of himself, and that these sexually explicit materials included live video transmissions of the minor male masturbating and displaying his genitals. 

McCord further admitted that between June 2024 and February 2025, he sent obscene materials including live video transmissions of himself masturbating and ejaculating to the minor male via the internet and cellular networks. 

McCord is scheduled to be sentenced on December 8, 2026, and faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years and up to 30 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. McCord must also register as a sex offender and owes restitution in an amount to be determined by the Court. 

McCord is retired from the West Virginia State Police and was a senior investigator with the West Virginia Commission on Special Investigations at the time of this offense. 

“This case represents a staggering and unforgivable betrayal by someone entrusted to uphold the law and safeguard the community,” said United States Attorney Moore Capito. “Few acts demonstrate such profound moral failure. This office remains relentless and uncompromising in its duty to protect our children and to ensure every predator is brought swiftly and decisively to justice.”

Capito made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Rada Herrald is prosecuting 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 the Criminal Division's 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 www.justice.gov/psc. 

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:25-cr-52.

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