BLACKSBURG, Va. – A former professor of communications at Virginia Tech has been sentenced to 60 months in federal prison for possessing child pornography, according to the Department of Justice.
Michael Horning, 51, from Christiansburg, pleaded guilty in September 2024 to a charge of knowingly possessing visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
Court documents reveal that Horning downloaded child pornography between 2009 and 2021, using peer-to-peer filesharing software like Freenet. When his electronic devices were seized in December 2021, authorities found 663 images and 14 videos depicting child pornography, along with additional child sex abuse material.
Among the disturbing content, 38 images and one video involved infants or toddlers, and one video depicted sadomasochism. The case was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Zachary T. Lee and Stanley M. Meador, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Division.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Scheff prosecuted the case.