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Deric Wallace Peacock, 39, of Highland Springs, a former pastor at the now defunct South Hopewell Church of God, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after being convicted of distribution of child pornography.
Prosecutors say that on April 12, 2022, Peacock use Wickr, an encrypted messaging service, to distribute child pornography using his “vapastor” user account.
Officials made note that at the time he distributed the illicit materials, Peacock was on probation for two prior state court convictions for procuring sex acts by computer of an individual believed to be under the age of 15.
Investigators say that they were able to link specific videos to Peacock’s “vapastor” account, which included imagery of children being sexually abused.
Peacock has been listed in the Virginia State Police Sexual Offender Registry since November 2015 after being convicted the year prior of proposing a sexual act to a minor over the Internet in Montgomery County.
He was suspended from his church after the 2014 conviction.
According to officials, “this case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.”
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