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On February 24, 2025, Sean Christopher Williams, 53, of Johnson City, Tennessee, was sentenced to 95 years in prison by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, United States District Judge, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville.

In July of 2024, Williams was convicted at trial of escape in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 751(a), and in November of 2024, Williams was convicted at trial of three counts of production of child pornography in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2251(a) and (e).

The evidence presented at the escape trial showed that Williams escaped from a transport van en route to the Greeneville Federal Courthouse on October 18, 2023. His escape resulted in a multistate manhunt that led to the capture of Williams in Pinellas County, Florida, on November 21, 2023.

The evidence presented at the pornography trial showed that Williams used three minor children to engage in sexually explicit conduct and took photos of the conduct. The conduct occurred at Williams’s apartment in Johnson City.

The evidence showed that Williams sexually assaulted each of the victims’ mothers while they were unconscious, around the same time that he took pornographic photos of their children. The criminal conduct extended over a 12-year period. Williams took photos of the first victim in 2008 and the two other victims on separate occasions in 2020. Williams was arrested in 2023 near the campus of Western Carolina University, and campus police officers seized flash drives from his car that were later found to contain the photos.

“Sean Williams is a dangerous sexual predator who preyed on our community’s most vulnerable victims,” said United States Attorney Francis M. Hamilton III. “Today’s sentence reflects the severity of the crimes committed and not only ensures that this dangerous individual has been held accountable for the harm he caused, but also prevents him from hurting others again. We thank the dedicated law enforcement officers whose efforts made the convictions and sentence possible.”

“Our children are among the most vulnerable members of our community,” said Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Nashville Field Office. “The FBI will continue to do everything in its power to stop sexual exploitation of children that causes irreparable harm and trauma to the victims and bring to justice those responsible.”

“This case shows the impact of collaboration and determination by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and our local, state, and federal partners to hold accountable an individual who preyed upon innocent children,” said TBI Director David Rausch.

“We hope the outcome of this investigation sends a clear message that we will continue to commit all the necessary resources to find and apprehend those who victimize our most vulnerable residents.”

Law enforcement agencies either participating in a joint investigation or cooperating in a parallel investigation that led to the apprehension, indictment, and subsequent conviction of Williams included the FBI, the United States Marshal Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the First Judicial District Attorney’s Office, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, and the Western North Carolina Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Meghan L. Gomez, Emily M. Swecker, and J. Gregory Bowman represented the United States at the trials.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), 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 Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.