Former Tomah and Kettle Moraine High School Principal Charged with Child Enticement and Possession of Child Pornography

United States Attorney Matthew D. Krueger of the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that David A. Hay (age: 39), a resident of Brooklyn, New York, was charged via a criminal complaint following his December 29, 2019, arrest by local authorities.

According to the complaint and supporting affidavit, starting in July of 2019, Hay, a former Wisconsin resident, began corresponding on a popular dating app with “Colton” whom he believed to be a 14 year-old boy living in Neenah, Wisconsin.  Hay began engaging in sexually explicit conversations with “Colton” and making plans to meet up with the minor to engage in sexual activity.

“Colton” was, in fact, a City of Neenah Police Investigator operating undercover.  The complaint alleges that Hay procured a “whirlpool suite” at a Neenah area hotel for the purpose of meeting up with the child for sexual activity.  Following Hay’s arrest, a search of his smart phone revealed sexually explicit images of a former Tomah High School student.  Hay was the principal at that school from 2011-2014.  Prior to that he was an administrator at Kettle Moraine High School for several years.      

Hay faces charges of using a computer to attempt to persuade, induce, or entice a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2422(b), and possession of child pornography, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252A(a)(5)(B).  He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to a lifetime of imprisonment if convicted of the enticement charge, and up to 10 years imprisonment if convicted of the child pornography possession charge.

This case was investigated by the City of Neenah Police Department with the assistance of the Green Bay office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office.  It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel R. Humble.

A criminal complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006, by the U.S. Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood, marshals, federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.