Epping man pleads guilty to purchasing live-streamed child sexual abuse from Philippines
David Mendum, 46, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to one count of coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity as part of a negotiated plea deal. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 25, 2025.
Mendum was arrested Nov. 7, 2024, as part of a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) probe into individuals who have engaged in the sexual exploitation of children through internet-based videoconferencing and chat applications.
According to court documents, HSI identified individuals operating child sex trafficking networks from the Philippines who were collecting viewership fees from vetted customers to show the sexual abuse of minors in real time during private webcam interactions on a variety of streaming video services and applications.
Mendum, according to court documents, used a Skype account starting in 2020 to communicate with one of the traffickers.
According to court records, the two exchanged 5,022 messages, one media file and 18 connected calls. Summonses issued to money services businesses revealed 500 money transfers sent by Mendum to recipients in the Philippines, totaling more than $39,000 between Jan. 8, 2018, to Sept. 25, 2024.
Federal agents executed a search warrant at Mendum's home on Nov. 7, 2024, seizing multiple electronic devices, including three laptops and a cellphone. During an interview, Mendum initially denied using online platforms to access child sexual abuse material but later admitted to it when confronted with chat records, according to an agent's affidavit.
"Mendum acknowledged a sexual interest in children and admitted that he had engaged in the above communication and other similar communications for the purpose of obtaining sexually explicit content depicting minors," the affidavit states.
Mendum was initially charged with sexual exploitation of children, as well as coercion and enticement of a minor. Under the terms of a negotiated plea agreement, federal prosecutors agreed to dismiss the exploitation charge. He now faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, with a maximum possible term of life. Prosecutors are recommending a sentence ranging from 20 to 27 years.
The Department of Homeland Security led the investigation. The New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and Epping Police Department provided assistance. Assistant U.S Attorney Anna Z. Krasinski is prosecuting the case.
The case is brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the DOJ's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Epping man pleads guilty to purchasing live-streamed child sex abuse
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CONCORD — An Epping man admitted in federal court Aug. 19 to paying child sex traffickers in the Philippines to live-stream the sexual abuse of children for his viewing online. David Mendum, 46, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to one count of coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity as part of a negotiated plea deal. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 25, 2025. Mendum was arrested Nov. 7, 2024, as part of a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) probe into individuals who have engaged in the sexual exploitation of children through internet-based videoconferencing and chat applications. According to court documents, HSI identified individuals operating child sex trafficking networks from the Philippines who were collecting viewership fees from vetted customers to show the sexual abuse of minors in real time during private webcam interactions on a variety of streaming video services and applications. Mendum, according to court documents, used a Skype account starting in 2020 to communicate with one of the traffickers. According to court records, the two exchanged 5,022 messages, one media file and 18 connected calls. Summonses issued to money services businesses revealed 500 money transfers sent by Mendum to recipients in the Philippines, totaling more than $39,000 between Jan. 8, 2018, to Sept. 25, 2024. Federal agents executed a search warrant at Mendum's home on Nov. 7, 2024, seizing multiple electronic devices, including three laptops and a cellphone. During an interview, Mendum initially denied using online platforms to access child sexual abuse material but later admitted to it when confronted with chat records, according to an agent's affidavit. "Mendum acknowledged a sexual interest in children and admitted that he had engaged in the above communication and other similar communications for the purpose of obtaining sexually explicit content depicting minors," the affidavit states. Mendum was initially charged with sexual exploitation of children, as well as coercion and enticement of a minor. Under the terms of a negotiated plea agreement, federal prosecutors agreed to dismiss the exploitation charge. He now faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, with a maximum possible term of life. Prosecutors are recommending a sentence ranging from 20 to 27 years. The Department of Homeland Security led the investigation. The New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and Epping Police Department provided assistance. Assistant U.S Attorney Anna Z. Krasinski is prosecuting the case. The case is brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the DOJ's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Epping man pleads guilty to purchasing live-streamed child sex abuse
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