Gainesville man arrested on 13 child pornography charges

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – David William Addis, 33, was arrested yesterday for possession and transmission of child pornography after an investigation into videos that were reported by the Kik platform.

On May 29, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a CyberTip from Kik about a user account that had shared 18 videos of child sexual abuse material between April 19 and April 22, and Gainesville Police Department investigated the tip.

One of the IP addresses used to upload the videos was a Cox account that was traced to Addis’ address in Gainesville Place Apartments (2800 SW 35th Place), and a subpoena to Kik reportedly found that the account was created using an email address that belonged to Addis.

The arrest report provides a transcript of 10 chats with other users, some of whom claimed to be 14 or 15 years old. The chats show that Addis’ account was actively looking to “trade” child sexual abuse material with other users; in one chat, the account owner states that his name is David and he is from Florida. The account also stated that he preferred the age range of “um like 10 and up.”

In several of the chats, Addis’ account asked another user for “cp” (child pornography) but declined when he was offered a “mega link” for a price, saying he was “scared” or was “just looking for someone to trade or show me some”; he told one account, “I don’t want to get in [trouble] I’m good.” He sent pictures of himself in some of the chats, including pictures in pantyhose and high heels. In two of the chats, he and the other user fantasized about what they would do sexually if they were together; in one chat, the other user wrote, “the fact your [sic] 33 and I’m 14 is wrong,” and Addis’ account responded, “It is big time for sure.”

In one chat Addis’ account told the other account that he has had sex with a 17-year-old boy, and in another he said he had sex with a 16-year-old girl, along with mentioning having sex with men and women from 19 to 60 years old. One user encouraged him to get a Telegram account because they could trade longer videos; that account mentioned having a 33-minute video of a mother “playing with” her 6-year-old daughter, and Addis’ account shared a Telegram username a short time later.

The arrest report notes that Addis’ Facebook profile picture shows a couch with distinctive stitching, and some of the images and videos that were shared on Kik show a couch that appears to be the same one. Also, one of the videos reportedly shows a distinct pattern in the shower tile, and the shower in his previous home has the same pattern on the tile.

Yesterday, GPD SWAT assisted with serving a search warrant at Addis’ apartment, and officers made contact with Addis; he reportedly said he had lived in the apartment for about a year and had previously lived at the house that has the distinctive tile.

Post Miranda, Addis reportedly admitted that the email address used to created the Kik account is his, but he denied creating or using the Kik account and said he had sent videos to someone else who must have created the account and pretended to be Addis. However, he later reportedly admitted ownership of the Kik account but said he didn’t know he was chatting with juveniles. He eventually reportedly said he had solicited, possessed, and distributed child sexual abuse material and agreed that one of the female victims looks as young as five to seven years old. He also reportedly identified himself in “numerous” images and videos that were distributed on Kik, and some of the items seen in the content, including high heels and pantyhose, were reportedly found in his bedroom.

Addis reportedly said he had made a mistake, although he knew his activities were illegal. He reportedly admitted creating two or three different Kik accounts to either chat with minors or trade child sexual abuse material. When he was asked about the sexual encounters he had described with juveniles, he reportedly said he had made that up.

Forensic examiners reportedly found child sexual abuse material on Addis’ cell phone, and a complete analysis of his devices is pending.

Addis has been charged with eight counts of distribution of child pornography, two counts of possession of child pornography, and three counts of transmission of harmful material to minors. Addis has no local criminal history; Judge Kristine Van Vorst set bail at $1,450,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.