Former D.C. Teacher Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Production

A former elementary teacher at the Washington National Cathedral's Beauvoir School plead guilty to production of child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. 

Eric Justin Toth, 31, told attorneys from several states in a U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C., that he was guilty of three counts of production of child pornography, misuse of a social security number and identity theft, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Toth took photos and videos of children in 2005 while working as a camp counselor in Wisconsin, in 2006 while working as a teacher at the Beauvoir School and in 2007 at a home in Maryland, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. 

"By entering a global plea, the victims of this child predator will not be further traumatized," Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy said. "Today is an important first step towards healing for the victims and their families.”

He faces up to 30 years in prison with 25 years of supervised probation and sex offender registration. If the plea is approved, Toth will be sentenced on March 11, 2014, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. 

“Eric Toth is every parent’s worst nightmare: a serial predator who took advantage of his position as a camp counselor and a teacher to sexually exploit children in his care,” U.S. Attorney Ronald Machen said.

In 2008, Beauvoir school administrators discovered child pornography on a school camera used by Toth. He was federally charged soon after in both D.C. and Maryland courts.

An investigation into his crimes ensued, but Toth fled the country. He remained at large for five years, one of which he spent on the FBI's Top-Ten Most Wanted list. 

In April of this year, Toth was found in Nicaragua with more than 1,000 pictures of child pornography on his computer, Machen said. 

“Today, Eric Toth took responsibility for producing pornographic images of children who were entrusted to his care,” said Assistant Director in Charge Valerie Parlave.

 “The unfortunate reality is that Toth, an audacious and prolific child predator, is representative of many abusers in our communities who prey upon children in places where we believe they are safe," Parlave said.