NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — A former U.S. Navy sailor pleaded guilty Friday to receiving child sexual abuse material.
From Jan. 11 2023 to Mar. 23, 2023, Gabriel Benjamin Hester, an active-duty service member at that time, uploaded seven child sexual abuse material files.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received several tips to its cyber tipline from a cloud-based storage provider that a user uploaded seven files of child sexual abuse material. The center reported this information, along with the phone number associated with the user’s account, to the Chesapeake Police Department.
In April 2023, the Chesapeake Police Department identified Hester, noting that he appeared to be an active-duty servicemember. The Chesapeake police then notified the Naval Criminal Investigative Service of the investigation. NCIS confirmed Hester was active-duty in the Navy, stationed in Portsmouth, Virginia from April 30, 2020 until Sept. 23, 2024.
NCIS executed a command authorized search and seizure for Hester’s cell phone aboard the USS John Warner Barge. NCIS recovered 206 pictures and 62 videos of child sexual abuse material and 71 images of child erotica from the phone. An additional 60 files of child sexual abuse material were recovered from the Snapchat folder “my eyes only.”
A further search of Hester’s phone revealed Hester received, purchased, traded and distributed child sexual abuse material using an online messaging app. According to court documents, on April 27, 2023, Hester asked another user on the messaging app, “You have cp?” and requested to exchange files. He then sent two videos of child sexual abuse material and asked, “Bueno?” Hester then received three child sexual abuse material videos and thanked the sender. Hester followed by asking the user in Spanish if he had more such videos. Hester sent two more child sexual abuse material videos and asked the user to trade. He then received four more child sexual abuse material video files.
Court documents state that on some occasions, Hester would communicate in Spanish to obtain child sexual abuse materials.
Hester is set to be sentenced April 16. He will serve at least five years behind bars but could serve as much as 20 years in prison.