A Linthicum Heights man has admitted he spent years paying to watch the livestreamed sexual abuse of children in the Philippines, in a case federal authorities describe as an extensive, organized operation spanning hundreds of payments and dozens of live sessions.
Philip Andrew Turner pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court to charges tied to using video chats and online payments to coerce young victims and work directly with traffickers overseas, according to prosecutors. They say Turner negotiated prices, picked out victims and directed sex acts while on live video.
Guilty plea and what prosecutors say
As reported by FOX45, Turner, 47, admitted to coercion and enticement, telling investigators he used Skype to persuade and direct children in the Philippines to perform sexual acts during paid livestreams. According to the station, Turner joined roughly 110 Skype calls and exchanged about 40 media files with a known trafficker who was selling access to the children.
Financial records cited by FOX45 show Turner made 437 successful payments totaling more than $29,000 between 2017 and 2025. Prosecutors say those payments lined up with the timing of the livestreamed abuse and related media exchanges.
Federal indictment and case history
Before the guilty plea, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland had announced a 15-count federal indictment charging Turner with sexual exploitation of a minor, online coercion and enticement, and receipt and possession of child sexual abuse material, according to a Justice Department press release. The office said Turner used multiple online accounts to reach traffickers in the Philippines, haggle over prices, select specific children and store images in an online account.
Prosecutors have said the case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a long-running Department of Justice initiative that targets online child exploitation and coordinates federal, state and local investigations.
Evidence seized in the raid
Federal agents served a search warrant at Turner’s Linthicum Heights home on October 28, 2025, and found a laptop open to his Skype account, according to FOX45. Forensic analysts reported locating more than 600 child sexual abuse images that had been downloaded via the Tor network in mid-October 2025.
Investigators say transaction records linked Turner’s online payments to traffickers in the Philippines, and chat logs backed up the negotiations over price, child victims and specific sex acts. The investigation involved Homeland Security Investigations, Maryland State Police and the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Neighbors and local reaction
Neighbors told a local station they were stunned to learn someone on their quiet street was accused of participating in a child-trafficking scheme stretching halfway around the globe, according to reporting by CBS Baltimore. Cellphone video captured agents swarming the home during the October raid.
A local victim-services group told CBS Baltimore that the combination of video-chat platforms and easy digital payment tools has made this form of abuse easier to arrange and harder for law enforcement to spot. Authorities say the investigation, which began in 2024, ultimately widened to identify U.S.-based buyers who were paying traffickers abroad for access to children.
Legal implications and what’s next
With Turner now pleading guilty to coercion and enticement of minors under federal law, he faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and a possible maximum of life, under the applicable federal statutes and sentencing rules. The earlier 15-count indictment also listed sexual-exploitation charges that carry their own mandatory minimum sentences for certain convictions, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has noted.
Sentencing will be set by a federal judge after pre-sentence investigation and briefing. The court will weigh the various counts, the advisory sentencing guidelines and facts laid out in the plea and related filings before deciding how long Turner will serve.
