Two Spotsylvania students were charged this morning in connection with an ongoing sexting investigation.

Moizeis Ribeiro, 18, and an unnamed 15-year-old boy were each charged with possession of child pornography with intent to distribute and electronic solicitation, said 1st Sgt. Liz Scott of the Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s Office.

The charges are the first ever placed in Spotsylvania in a sexting case.

Sexting refers to sending nude or explicit pictures over cell phone text messages and is common mostly associated with teenagers. Scott said recently that there have been several reports of the new texting trend, but today’s charges mark the first case to be prosecuted.

The charges came as the result of an investigation that began Feb. 19, according to a search warrant affidavit filed in Spotsylvania County Circuit Court.

On that day, Deputy S. Pyktel, who works as a school resource officer, was told about a sexting incident at Spotsylvania High School regarding Ribeiro’s possession of photos of a nude 13-year-old girl on his cell phone, the affidavit states.

Scott said through the investigation over the last several weeks by Detective J.C. Blankenship, it was found that Ribeiro and the 15-year-old boy had solicited pictures from three juveniles, including the 13-year-old who is a student at Chancellor Middle School.

Scott also said that one of the juveniles was in elementary school.

Scott said today in a release that during the investigation, seven cell phones were seized and three juveniles were identified, but authorities have yet to identify two others pictured on the phones.

She said that the unknown photos were sent to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children for possible identification.

Ellen Biltz: 540/374-5424
ebiltz@freelancestar.com