Robert John May, III, a 38-year-old former state lawmaker from West Columbia, South Carolina, has pleaded guilty to five counts of distributing child sexual abuse material. The charges stem from activities that occurred over a five-day period in March and April 2024.
According to court documents and statements made in court, the investigation began when Kik, a social media platform, sent a tip to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). The tip indicated that an account with the username “joebidennnn69” distributed videos depicting the sexual abuse of children to other Kik users 50 times during the specified period.
Investigators traced the account activity to May’s home IP address and mobile device. They determined that videos depicting child sexual abuse were distributed from this account at least 479 times within those five days. Most of these distributions were linked directly to May’s home address or cell phone. Records showed that the account connected to his home Wi-Fi network 958 times and his cell phone 67 times.
A federal grand jury charged May with distributing ten videos of child sexual abuse shared from this account. Forensic analysis revealed further evidence connecting May to the crimes: his phone’s user dictionary included “joebidennnn,” and it contained the same email used for registering the Kik account. Applications such as Kik, Telegram, Mega, and Sessions messenger—referenced in Kik messages—were deleted from his phone within seconds of each other on April 4, 2024. His phone received more than 450 alerts from Kik while the account was active. Conversations on the “joebidennnn69” account matched internet searches and app downloads found on May’s devices at corresponding times. Both May and the user of this Kik account also shared the pseudonym Eric Rentling.
May faces a minimum sentence of five years in federal prison and up to twenty years if convicted on all counts. He may also be fined up to $250,000, required to pay restitution, placed under supervision for life following imprisonment, and must register as a sex offender upon release.
United States District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie accepted May’s guilty plea. Sentencing is scheduled for January 14, 2026 after review of a pre-sentence report by the U.S. Probation Office.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, South Carolina Attorney General’s Office Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and Lexington County Sheriff’s Department. Prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott Matthews, Elliott B. Daniels, Dean Secor, along with Austin M. Berry from the Department of Justice’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section.
“The conduct May pleaded guilty to represents some of the most depraved and exploitative conduct we investigate,” said Bryan Stirling, U.S. Attorney for the District of South Carolina. “Our office will bring every resource available to protect children from violence and abuse. This prosecution was made possible through excellent law enforcement coordination between Homeland Security Investigations, the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department and all those who work to protect the most vulnerable in our society.”
The term “child sexual abuse material” is now preferred over “child pornography” as it better reflects both what is depicted in such images or videos and their impact on victims.
