in World News Virginia LGBTQ activist, nurse practitioner pleads guilty to federal child sex crimes
Katie Daviscourt
Lucas Allen Fussell, 42, of Onley, pleaded guilty to two counts of distribution of child pornography.
A Virginia nurse practitioner with a history of LGBTQ activism has pleaded guilty to federal child sex crime charges. Lucas Allen Fussell, 42, of Onley, distributed and possessed child pornographic videos and images depicting the rape and sexual abuse of minor boys. Authorities said some victims were as young as toddlers. He faces a maximum of 40 years in prison.
Court filings show Fussell also made numerous sexualized comments on an encrypted messaging app about examining the genitals of his patients—some as young as 11 years old—that he saw while working as a nurse practitioner at Eastern Shore Rural Health. He pleaded guilty on December 18 to two counts of distribution of child pornography in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, according to the Justice Department.
Between December 20, 2023, and February 7, 2024, Fussell exchanged several videos and images containing child pornography with another individual whose phone was later seized by the FBI, according to court documents. In those conversations, Fussell shared details that revealed his identity, which included his home address, a description of his vehicle, and sexualized comments about examining the genitals of his prepubescent patients, court filings show.
In June 2024, an undercover agent with the FBI-MPD Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force used the seized phone to respond to a message from Fussell. The defendant sent the undercover agent “numerous images and videos depicting the rape and sexual abuse of prepubescent boys” on June 22, and again on June 30, according to court records.
On July 16, 2024, the FBI executed a search warrant at Fussell’s residence in Onley, Virginia, and seized numerous encrypted electronic devices. Fussell was arrested and has been held in custody without bail.