Hampton man pleads guilty to recording videos of minors in amusement park restroom

NORFOLK, Va. – A Hampton man pled guilty today to possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

According to court documents, on Sept. 4, 2021, Corey Thomas Mason, 29, used a cell phone to record two videos of exposed minors in a restroom stall at an amusement park.

On Feb. 8, 2022, the Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) Police Department requested assistance from the Naval Investigative Criminal Service (NCIS) with conducting a review of Mason’s cellphone relating to a video voyeurism that had recently occurred on NNSY in Portsmouth. Investigators conducted a digital forensic extraction on Mason’s cellphone. An initial review of the cellphone extraction revealed several suspected recordings of males while utilizing bathroom stalls. On Feb. 14, 2022, further review identified the two videos of minors.

On April 13, 2022, NCIS obtained a federal search warrant to review the forensic extraction and found 141 voyeuristic videos taken in what appear to be bathroom stalls, including the two videos of minors.

Mason is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 18 and faces up to 20 years in prison. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Mack Hickman, Special Agent in Charge of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Norfolk Field Office, made the announcement after Senior U.S. District Judge John A. Gibney Jr. accepted the plea.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Heck is prosecuting the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-48.

This release was edited on June 22, 2024, to reflect that the defendant pled guilty to possession of CSAM, not production.