7 hours ago
Pensacola man pleads guilty to cyberstalking and sending obscene materials to minor females
PENSACOLA, Fla. (WKRG) — A Pensacola man has pleaded guilty to charges of cyberstalking and sending obscene materials to minor girls.
Prichard police investigating officer's use of non-issued baseball bat before arrest
According court documents, 28-year-old Charles M. Schmaltz used ten or more social media accounts to contact several young girls between the ages of 9 and 15 between 2022 and 2024.
The girls and their parents repeatedly asked Schmaltz to stop contacting them, but Schmaltz instead sent sexually explicit content to the girls, including 'extremely graphic' communications about performing sexual acts with the girls and pictures of his genitals, court documents revealed.
According to the US Department of Justice, agencies including the FBI, the Escambia County, Fla. Sheriffs Office, and the Dale County Sheriff's Office worked together to investigate, find, and arrest Schmaltz.
Schmaltz's sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 18, 2025, at 2 p.m. at the United States Courthouse in Pensacola. According to the DOJ, he could face up to 30 years in prison and lifetime supervision after his release.
'Protecting children from online exploitation and abuse is of paramount importance, and my office will aggressively pursue, prosecute, and seek punishment to the fullest extent of the law for those who prey upon our most innocent, vulnerable populations,' U.S. Attorney John P. Heekin said. 'My message to offenders is clear: if you prey upon our children, you had better pray we don't find you.'
Woman dead, husband and child injured in boat crash on Bayou Sara: ALEA
The case was part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to fight child sexual exploitation and abuse.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
