David Pettigrew was arrested Thursday, August 6 after ICE’s Homeland Security Investigation found he uploaded child porn online.

A Denison pastor has been sentenced to time in federal prison after he pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of children; conspiracy and attempt.

David Alan Pettigrew, 49, will serve 30 years in federal prison for sexual crimes against children in the Eastern District of Texas. The sentencing was issued Monday by U.S. District Judge Amos L. Mazzant.

According to information presented in court, Pettigrew came to the attention of law enforcement through referrals sent by two electronic service providers and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which indicated a user had uploaded files of suspected child pornography.

Investigators traced the leads to Pettigrew’s home in Denison and the Denison Church of the Nazarene. Members of Homeland Security Investigations and the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office served search warrants at both locations on Aug. 6, 2020, at which time Pettigrew was arrested for transporting child pornography.

As the investigation progressed, investigators discovered Pettigrew and co-defendant Chad Michael Rider had set up hidden cameras in various locations in order to capture children in various stages of undress. Affidavits reveal the two used multiple hidden camera devices, including cameras disguised as hooks, clocks, a picture frame, a smoke detector, an AC wall adapter, charging blocks and a pen.

On Aug. 19, 2020, a grand jury returned an indictment charging Pettigrew with transportation of child pornography and both Pettigrew and Rider with conspiring to and attempting to sexually exploit children (aka production of child pornography).

“David Pettigrew is a predator who used his position to exploit children for his own gratification,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei. “Parents and kids in Grayson County trusted Pettigrew as an educator, pastor and friend, all the while unaware of his criminal intent. Working with children is nothing short of a privilege, and EDTX is committed to ensuring that those who assume responsibility for children do not violate that position of trust.”

“The deviant behavior of any individual that occupies a position or role of public trust, especially one that betrays that trust, is unforgivable and repulsive. The actions and the emotional trauma Pettigrew caused to the innocent children he preyed upon is devastating and life-altering,” said Ryan L. Spradlin, Special Agent in Charge of HSI Dallas. “Protecting those most vulnerable is a top priority for HSI and we will never relent in our pursuit of characters like Pettigrew who breach their positions of trust to exploit minors.”

As part of his plea, Pettigrew admitted to conspiring with Rider to record minors, including while the minors were nude, at locations in Collin and Grayson counties.

Pettigrew further admitted he secretly filmed a child in his home and that he and Rider filmed children undressing, bathing and toweling off at the Denison Church of the Nazarene in Grayson County.

The children were all approximately 11 to 14 years old at the time they were unknowingly recorded.

The case against Rider is ongoing and remains pending.

This case is 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. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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.

The case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marisa Miller.