A Powell man facing 20 felony charges relating to the distribution and possession of child pornography faces up to 222 years in prison and $200,000 in fines if convicted.
Christian David Petty, born in 1993, admitted to a special agent with the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) that he has a pornography addiction, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed in his case.
Petty was arrested last week and had his initial court appearance Friday in Park County Circuit Court after a 13-month investigation by the DCI’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
He’s scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Friday, where it will be determined if there’s enough evidence to put Petty on trial for 11 counts of receiving or delivering child porn, and nine counts of possessing explicit child sexual material.
He’s accused of uploading and downloading videos through an open-source file sharing network known to be used for distributing illegal material, Special Agent Gary Seder wrote in the affidavit.
He traced numerous incidents of child pornography being shared from an internet address linking back to Petty during an investigation that stretched from Feb. 13, 2025, through March 1, 2026, Seder wrote.
“During each contact, the suspect device was the sole candidate for all downloads received, and as such, each file was downloaded directly from a device accessing the internet from (Petty’s IP address),” the affidavit says.
What Was On The Computer
During the course of the investigation and a search of Petty’s computer, investigators found numerous video files showing nude prepubescent females being subjected to various sex acts, according to the affidavit.
The names of some of the video files explained what was on them, including “bathtime with daddy-3yo girl” and “9 yo Blonde In Camping Incest,” and multiple files labeled
“JulyJailbait pedofile MEGA pack HD.”
When Special Agent Seder interviewed Petty after he’d been read his Miranda rights, the Powell man didn’t deny sharing and possessing child pornography, the affidavit says.
“Petty described having an addiction to child pornography since he was approximately 17 years of age,” the affidavit says.
He also explained how he downloaded the pornography to his computer, and “indicated that he had a lot of child pornography.”
He would seek out the material by doing a search for “PTHC,” Seder wrote, which Petty believed was an acronym for “preteen hard core.”
“Petty’s age preference for child pornography was 12-15 years of age,” the affidavit continues. “Petty later indicated that he understood he was sharing child pornography.”
When law enforcement went to Petty’s apartment, they observed his computer was on and hooked up to a large-screen television in the living room, the affidavit says.
Up To 222 Years
The affidavit also mentions the apartment was the location of a Feb. 28 reported sexual assault.
“Petty was not home and was not involved in the sexual assault,” the affidavit says.
Each of the 11 charges of receiving or delivering child pornography is punishable by 5-12 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Each of the possession charges carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
If convicted and given concurrent sentences, Petty could face between 55 and 222 years in prison and up to $200,000 in fines.
Greg Johnson can be reached at greg@cowboystatedaily.com.
