Federal grand jury indicts Newton County man for sexual exploitation of a child, child pornography

A federal grand jury handed down a two-count indictment charging a Newton County man with sexual exploitation of a child and receiving and distributing child pornography.

According to the indictment, which was unsealed today in U. S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Nicholas Lane Stephens, 22, "used a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct" and committed the child pornography offenses between December 1, 2019 and January 14.

No date has been set for Stephens' initial court appearance.