Christopher Shepard, 31, of Rust Road in Gorham, was arraigned in U.S. District Court on charges that he took sexually explicit photos of a 10-year-old girl and posted them on the internet. Shepard was also charged with two counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and was arrested on May 3.
Charges were brought by Homeland Security alleging Shepard engaged in “sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct. The visual depiction was produced using materials that had been shipped and transported in and affecting interstate and foreign commerce.”
The 10-year-old girl came forward and claimed he had sexually assaulted her at his home and taken pictures of her which he then shared online. He was initially reported to the Gorham Police Department who forwarded the case along to the federal authorities. Gorham PD is continuing their investigation but have not yet filed charges against Shepard.
Shepard has been charged in state court with Gross Sexual Assault, a class A crime. If convicted, he could be sentenced to 15-30 years in federal prison on the child exploitation charges. He also faces up to 30 years in state prison on the the gross sexual assault charge. Shepard is being held at Strafford County Jail in Dover, N.H.