Head of elite D.C. preschool arrested after allegedly encouraging ‘dad’ to send him sex video of 9-year-old son
Exclusive: National Child Research Center head James Carroll thought he was chatting with the child’s father — who was actually an undercover FBI agent, according to court records
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The British-born director of a tony Washington, D.C., preschool was arrested Tuesday morning on charges that he solicited graphic sex abuse footage of a 9-year-old boy, via the child’s father — who was actually an undercover FBI agent.
James Stewart Carroll, head of school for the National Child Research Center, is facing one count of attempted coercion and enticement of a minor, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Tuesday morning in D.C. federal court. The complaint contains exceptionally disturbing details of Carroll’s alleged online chats, including conversations about “child sexual exploitation, circumcision of teenage boys, [and] urinating on teenage boys and adults.”
Patricia Hartman, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, confirmed in an email that Carroll was apprehended earlier today, and told The Independent that he was making his initial court appearance shortly after 3 p.m.
Tuition at NCRC costs just under $42,000 a year, and is “the oldest continuously operating preschool in the District of Columbia,” according to Carroll’s page on the NCRC website, which was still active as of Tuesday afternoon.
“At NCRC, children have the opportunity to experience a play-based program, which encourages inquiry and discovery,” it says. “NCRC will consistently strive to inspire and motivate each child, parent, and teacher within a nurturing, positive, joyful learning environment.”
NCRC officials did not respond to The Independent’s requests for comment on Tuesday. Carroll does not yet have a lawyer listed in court records, and was unable to be reached.
Carroll, 55, came to the FBI’s attention in mid-September, when an employee at Discord, an instant-messaging app especially popular among gamers, contacted the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to report a user had uploaded a photo of “two naked prepubescent boys lying on a piece of furniture,” the complaint states. It says the user behind the upload went by the username “CircumcisedLondonGay#0,” and was located in the D.C. area.
The center forwarded the tip to federal authorities, who traced the IP address to Carroll’s home, and connected the email used to create the account to the Beauvoir School, a primary school affiliated with the Washington National Cathedral, where Carroll previously served as director of outplacement, according to the complaint. A second IP address that had been used to access the Discord account “numerous times” over the past year, was traced back to NCRC, the complaint says, which lists two alternate accounts also allegedly operated by Carroll.
On November 5, an undercover agent assigned to the FBI’s Washington Field Office logged onto Discord and contacted Carroll using a dummy profile, the complaint states.
It says Carroll told the undercover agent that he was interested in “boys only,” and that he preferred ones between the ages of 8 and 12. The agent adopted the persona of a separated father with a 9-year-old son, whom he had custody of every other weekend, and said that he sexually abused him on a regular basis, according to the complaint.
Carroll relayed his interest in watching “relentless” sexual abuse, with “no mercy,” and encouraged the undercover agent to abuse his fictitious son, the complaint goes on.
Carroll at one point allegedly said of child porn, “If he’s crying, I get more turned on.”
Earlier this month, Carroll, who was then communicating with the undercover agent on the encrypted messaging app Telegram, deleted all of his chats, which he said he did periodically because it was “smart to do.”
“Ahhh gotcha,” the agent told Carroll. “I have a lot to lose so I always appreciate smart / safe people in our world.”
On November 12, FBI agents surveilled the NCRC and spotted Carroll’s car parked out front, the complaint states. Two days later, the undercover agent told Carroll about an abuse video he planned on recording, and asked Carroll what he wanted to see, it says.
He told Carroll that he was going to make a “special” part of the video just for him, which Carroll called “ideal,” and listed three ways he’d like the “dad” to abuse his child, according to the complaint.
“When I do this, I expect you to not share it,” the undercover agent told Carroll. “Gotta stay between me and you.”
“Of course!!!” Carroll replied, the complaint states.
On November 19, Carroll would be in handcuffs, courtesy of the U.S. Marshals Service.
If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison.