Middle Georgia man sentenced to 20 years for child pornography possession

A Middle Georgia man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to possessing child sexual abuse material.

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – A Middle Georgia man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to possessing child sexual abuse material.

The United States District Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia says 38-year-old David Heath will also face 20 years of supervised release and lifetime registration as a sex offender.

Heath, from both Macon and Gray, is not eligible for parole.

On February 1, he pleaded guilty to possession of sexual abuse material, including images depicting the severe abuse of infants and pre-pubescent children.

“Heath and other predators who actively seek out gratification from the horrifying sexual abuse of children are a danger to kids,” U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary said.

The investigation began with a Cybertip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in January of 2020, which led to a search of Heath’s Macon home two months later. Authorities ultimately found more than 2,000 images of CSAM on various devices.

Heath had a prior conviction for aggravated assault of a peace officer and had his parole revoked in 2020 for methamphetamine possession and child exploitation offenses.

The GBI conducted the investigation with Leah McEwen serving as the Criminal Chief prosecutor for the case.