A federal court in Charlotte has sentenced Luke Andrew Hemond, 64, of Hickory, North Carolina, to more than 10 years in prison for possession of child sexual abuse material. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Kenneth D. Bell and announced by Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. In addition to serving 121 months in prison, Hemond will be under lifetime court supervision.
Court documents and statements from the sentencing hearing revealed that Hemond was on probation for a previous conviction of attempted sexual assault while armed in Arizona at the time of his latest offense. On March 20, 2024, probation officers and law enforcement searched his residence as part of routine compliance checks with probation conditions and sex offender registry requirements. During this search, authorities found an SD card containing images depicting the sexual assault of minors.
After discovering the SD card, law enforcement obtained a search warrant and seized all electronic devices from Hemond’s home. A forensic review showed that he possessed thousands of images involving nude children, sexually abused children, and at least one image depicting child bondage.
Hemond pleaded guilty on May 27, 2025 to possessing child pornography involving a prepubescent minor and another minor under the age of twelve. He remains in federal custody pending transfer to a designated federal prison facility.
U.S. Attorney Ferguson expressed gratitude to Homeland Security Investigations; the U.S. Marshals Service; the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction’s Division of Community Supervision; as well as local agencies including the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office, Hickory Police Department and Long View Police Department for their roles in investigating this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Spaugh prosecuted the case out of Charlotte.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood—a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006—aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse by coordinating efforts among federal, state and local agencies to identify offenders and rescue victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
