Charlotte man sentenced to 42 years in prison for child sexual exploitation

Lina Portman1 week ago

0 1 minute read

CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — A Charlotte man was sentenced to 42 years in prison for sexual exploitation of minors, according to Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

Phillip Christopher Weise, 36, was sentenced to the maximum sentence possible due to a series of disturbing crimes involving children, which Presiding Judge Whitney said will have a lifelong impact on the victim.

According to court documents, authorities received a tip in December 2020 that Weise was uploading child pornography to social media. In March 2021, law enforcement searched his home and seized electronic devices.

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Officials say Weise posed as a minor on several social media platforms to befriend children. He then sent them explicit images of other children and coerced the minors into sending explicit material. Weise sometimes encouraged children to involve animals and younger siblings in the videos.

Authorities say Weise sometimes threatened to post explicit videos if he didn't receive more. It mainly targeted children aged 4 to 12.

More than six victims have been identified.

On March 9, 2023, Weise pleaded guilty to producing child pornography, extortion, and transferring obscene material to minors. He is in federal custody and awaiting transfer to a prison.

Upon his release from prison, Weise will be on lifelong probation and will have to register as a sex offender.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department were involved in the investigation. This case was part of Safe Childhood Project.

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