Palmetto State News

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson has announced the arrest of Christopher Lee Hagood, a 45-year-old resident of Anderson, South Carolina. Hagood faces three charges related to the sexual exploitation of a minor. The arrest was made by Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force investigators from the Anderson County Sheriff's Office, with assistance from investigators in the Attorney General's Office who are also part of the state's ICAC Task Force.

The investigation began after a CyberTipline report was received from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), which led authorities to Hagood. According to investigators, Hagood is accused of distributing files containing child sexual abuse material and sending sexually explicit images to a minor.

Hagood was taken into custody on March 10, 2025. He faces two counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor under South Carolina law (§16-15-405), each carrying a potential sentence of up to 10 years in prison. Additionally, he is charged with one count of disseminating obscene material to a person under age twelve (§16-15-355), which could result in up to 15 years imprisonment.

It is noted that Hagood remains incarcerated following a similar arrest in 2024. The new charges stem from a CyberTip submitted before his previous arrest that year.

The Attorney General's Office will handle the prosecution of this case. Attorney General Wilson emphasized that "all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law."

Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) is increasingly used as it more accurately describes the nature of these crimes compared to terms like "pornography," which can imply consent by minors involved. This shift reflects global efforts to adopt CSAM terminology for clarity and accuracy.