South Carolina State Representative RJ May Be Accused of Distributing Child Sexual Abuse Materials
A Republican member of the South Carolina House of Representatives has been charged with 10 counts of distributing child sexual abuse materials.
RJ May was arrested Wednesday at his home in Lexington County. What he was arrested on federal charges was a lengthy investigation into his internet activity. He appeared in federal court Thursday.
According to the indictment, three-term Republicans used several screen names, including one citing former President Joe Biden – “Joebidennnn69” while exchanging CSAM files on the Kik social media network.
According to Wistv, Kik notified the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in April 2024, with several videotapes containing videos of child abuse related to accounts prosecutors believe are controlled by May.
South Carolina Republican Congressman RJ May is charged with 10 counts of using KIK social media platform (YouTube) to distribute child sexual abuse material
At a hearing Thursday, a memo, including KIK data, publicly showed May's account allegedly had 265 videos of child abuse related to it. The data also includes IP address data that links the account to the May Home Wi-Fi network.
“The agents reconfirmed during the surveillance of the residence and during the search of the residence. “So, [child abuse] The activity on Kik is conducted by someone other than May who will have to know the Wi-Fi password. ”
The indictment also noted that forensic analysis of May phone calls found that he deleted Kik, Telegram, Mega and Loki Messenger within seconds of April 2024.
The memorandum further claims that May's activities at Kik show that he has “sexual interest” in children who are the same as his own” and has “sexual interest” between young children and parents.
“It is possible that this behavior was engaged in multiple times on his cell phone and in his own home, presumably without the knowledge of his wife,” the memo read. “If he could hide this criminal activity from someone who shared his bedroom with him, he could easily hide it in any court enforcement mechanism. In addition, there is evidence that he recently went to South America for commercial sex, and again and again, perhaps without his wife, and therefore he did not even leave the country.
The indictment does not contain additional information about the fees. If convicted, May could face five to 20 years in prison.
According to Wistv, Justice Shiva Hodge ordered continued detention before the trial.
After being elected to the House in 2020, May may have helped establish the Freedom Caucus, which organizes the state’s most conservative members. The group has already run for its own candidate for the House Speaker and boycotted the Republican Majority Caucus because it requires a commitment to loyalty.
The Freedom Caucus issued a statement Wednesday saying they were kicked out of May after their arrest. May was also suspended from his role in the South Carolina House of Representatives, according to a letter from South Carolina House Speaker Murrell Smith.
Members of Congress are the conservative voices in the house.
“As lawmakers, we have an obligation to make sure our children are not harming them,” May said in a transgender care debate on minors in January 2024.
independent May's comments have been requested.
