Waites Sentenced in Child Pornography Case

(Cape Girardeau, MO) A Piedmont man, 47 year old Tony Ray Waites, is facing 30 years in federal prison for the offense of production of child pornography. Waites was sentenced Tuesday in Cape Girardeau. The investigation began in March of 2022 when a boy, who was 11 years old at the time, reported he had been sexually abused by Waites on multiple occasions saying he believed Waites recorded the abuse. The Wayne County Sheriff’s Office obtained a search warrant for Waites’ residence and when officers explained the nature of the investigation to Waites, he quickly grabbed a knife and cut himself in the throat. Waites was immediately rushed to the hospital for medical treatment and was stabilized. Officers seized various electronic devices inside Waites’ residence and discovered several videos depicting Waites engaging in illegal sexual activity with the alleged victim. The examination further revealed Waites made sexually explicit recordings of nine additional boys from the area. At his guilty plea hearing last November, Waites admitted he produced the video recordings. After serving the 30 year sentence, Waites will be placed on supervised release for the rest of his life and be required to register as a sex offender.