DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — Montgomery County Prosecutor Mat Heck, Jr. announced that 38-year-old Christopher Searls, of Dayton, was sentenced to a range of 19 to 23 years in prison after being convicted for possessing child pornography and Gross Sexual Imposition.
In April 2020, a 9-year-old victim told authorities that Searls had inappropriately touched her.
An investigation uncovered that he had shown pornographic videos to the victim. This prompted authorities to acquire a search warrant for Searls’ home, where a computer was found with a significant amount of child pornography.
“Not only did this defendant sexually assault a 9 year old child, he showed her pornographic videos and child pornography. In order to protect other children from this defendant, he deserves the lengthy prison sentence,” said Heck.
He was indicted by the Montgomery County Grand Jury on Aug. 26 for:
- 60 counts of Pandering Obscenity Involving a Minor
- One count of Attempt to Commit Tampering with Evidence
Searls is now a Tier III Sex Offender which, upon his release, will require him to register with the Sheriff’s Office every 90 days for the rest of his life.
