Overview
- Laughton entered the guilty plea in Boston federal court to charges that include sexual exploitation of children.
- Prosecutors say former partner Lindsay Groves took four explicit images of children roughly ages 3 to 5 at Creative Minds Day Care in Tyngsborough, Massachusetts, between May and June 2022 and sent them to Laughton.
- Investigators say the pair exchanged thousands of text messages, including messages in which Laughton expressed sexual interest in the children.
- Groves previously pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of children and distribution of child pornography.
- Federal law sets penalties for sexual exploitation of children at 15 to 30 years in prison, with potential lifetime supervised release and fines up to $250,000.