CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) – A Charlotte man will serve a 17.5-year sentence after a federal jury found out he got a minor child to share child pornography through social media app.

On Thursday, U.S. Attorney Dena J. King said 28-year-old Sean Matthew Burney must also serve a lifetime of supervised release as part of the sentence. After his prison term, he must register as a sex offender.

Court documents showed that Burney used Snapchat for three days in February 2021 to coerce a minor male victim to create and share videos and images containing child pornography.

The minor victim’s mother contacted Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police to report that her 14-year-old son was being blackmailed via Snapchat and forced to send the blackmailer images and videos of the minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

Official learned that Burney represented himself as a female via Snapchat and contacted the victim. When the victim sent the sexually explicit images to Burney, the victim thought he was communicating with a female.

After the initial exchange, Burney demanded additional child pornography from the victim and threatened to post the victim’s sexually explicit images and videos on social media if the victim did not comply. The man continued to ask the victim for additional child pornography, knowing the victim was 14 years old.

Officials say that when the victim tried to break off contact with Burney, the man reportedly posted on Snapchat the victim’s account name and a caption to contact him if people wanted videos.

Authorities, during their investigation, connected Burney to the suspect’s Snapchat account. They got search warrants for the minor and Burney’s accounts. During the investigation, authorities located the child pornography.

On Oct. 19, 2022, Burney pleaded guilty to distributing child pornography. The man is in federal custody and with an undetermined federal institution destination in his future.

In announcing Thursday’s sentence, U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney said Burney’s predatory actions targeted a minor and sought to take over his free will.

The FBI and CMPD handled the investigation.