Providence Forge man enters guilty plea to downloading child pornography

A Providence Forge man who downloaded child pornography has entered a guilty plea as part of Monday morning proceedings in New Kent Circuit Court.

Christopher Paul Perry, 36, pled guilty to one count of possession of child pornography as part of a plea agreement. Five charges of possession of child pornography (second offense) were dropped.

In a summary of evidence, on Oct. 26, 2021, investigators involved with monitoring individuals who download child pornography discovered a dropbox that possibly had the illegal content. That box belonged to Perry after information about his email and whereabouts of where he lived were detected through the investigation. New Kent Sheriff’s Office was notified and a subpoena for a search warrant was executed to search his residence in early 2022. Perry advised officers that they did not have to search his home, as he admitted that he downloaded the images onto his phone and would later delete them. He was arrested on the charge.

Under the agreement, a presentence report is being prepared on the defendant, with a new law stating that no sentencing guidelines are to be prepared when a defendant requests a presentence report. Formal sentencing for Perry is scheduled for July 17.

In other circuit court matters:

–Brian Kevin Carroll Jr., 18, of the 9300 block of Minitree Glen Lane, Providence Forge, entered guilty pleas to one charge each of possession of a Schedule I/II drug, misdemeanor obstruction of justice, and misdemeanor DWI (first offense) as part of a plea agreement.

In a summary of evidence, on Dec. 10, 2022, a Virginia State Trooper responded to a single vehicle crash on Pocahontas Trail. The victim said that they had been hit by another vehicle who left the scene and provided the officer with a description of the vehicle. The trooper was able to find the vehicle at Don Miguel’s restaurant and located the defendant. Carroll admitted to driving and was disoriented when he performed field sobriety tests. When the trooper attempted to take Carroll into custody, a scuffle broke out, with the officer gaining control and arrested Carroll. The defendant was searched, resulting in the discovery of a white powdery substance in a plastic back wrapped inside of a dollar bill, later identified as cocaine.

Under the agreement, Carroll will be placed in the First Offender program. He will also serve one month in jail on the misdemeanor DUI conviction and pay a $250 fine on the misdemeanor DWI.

–Thomas Ray Walton, 29, of the 5600 block of County Drive, Barhamsville, entered a guilty plea to one count of possession of a Schedule I/II drug. A second charge of possession of a Schedule I/II drug was dropped as part of a plea agreement.

In a summary of evidence, on Oct. 19, 2022, a New Kent deputy had received information that the defendant had a warrant out of King William. After arriving to a residence Walton was staying in, the officer received permission to search the premises. On a table after immediately entering into the home, the deputy saw some clear baggies with a white powdery substance in them, later identified as hydrocodone.

Under the agreement, Wentz received a five-year sentence with all time suspended.

–Gary George Wentz Sr., 48, of Culpeper, entered in a plea deal stemming from a Dec. 20, 2021 incident, pleading guilty to one count each of misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia, misdemeanor identification theft, and misdemeanor violating of pretrial conditions. One charge each of possession of a Schedule I/II drug and misdemeanor providing false identification to a law enforcement officer was dropped.

In a summary of evidence, New Kent Sheriff’s Office has received a call about possible suspects in the area that had warrants on them. A New Kent deputy was able to locate the suspect’s vehicle in the parking lot of the Pilot Travel Center. Wentz, the passenger, was asked to identify himself, giving the officer wrong information. When the officer ran information on the vehicle that included Wentz having a picture of himself as the owner, the deputy returned to the vehicle and showed Wentz the picture. Wentz confessed that it was him and a search of the vehicle resulted in the discovery of a glass pipe that was being used as a smoking device.

Under the agreement, Wentz received a 12-month sentence with six months suspended (six months to serve) on the misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia. He also received another 12-month sentence with six months suspended (six months to serve) on the misdemeanor identification theft. All six months on his pretrial violation were suspended.