CHARLOTTE — Luke Andrew Hemond, a 64-year-old from Hickory, has been sentenced to over 10 years in prison for possession of child sexual abuse material, as announced by U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson on Thursday.
Hemond was sentenced to 121 months by U.S. District Judge Kenneth D. Bell, who also ordered him to serve a lifetime under court supervision. Hemond was on probation for a prior conviction of attempted sexual assault while armed in Arizona.
“This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse,” said U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson.
On March 20, 2024, North Carolina probation officers and law enforcement conducted a search of Hemond’s residence to ensure compliance with his probation conditions and sex offender registry laws. During the search, law enforcement located an SD card in Hemond’s bedroom that contained images depicting the sexual assault of minors.
After finding the SD card, court records show that law enforcement obtained and executed a search warrant, seizing all electronic devices from the residence.
A forensic review of the devices revealed that Hemond possessed thousands of images depicting children that were nude, children being sexually abused, and at least one image of child bondage.
On May 27, Hemond pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography that involved a prepubescent minor and a minor who had not attained 12 years of age.
He is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney Ferguson thanked Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Marshals Service, the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction’s Division of Community Supervision, the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office, the Hickory Police Department, and the Long View Police Department Office for their investigation of the case.
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