Former teacher sentenced on child pornography charges
33-year-old Michael Allen Dendy admitted to catfishing multiple students online
SANDERSVILLE, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – A former Washington County high school teacher has been sentenced to 400 months in federal prison for two charges related to child pornography, according to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia.
On July 20th of 2024, 33-year-old Michael Allen Dendy of Milledgeville pleaded guilty to one county of production of child pornography and one count of distributing child pornography. His 400 month sentence will be followed by 10 years of supervised release. Dendy will be required to register as a child sex offender when he’s released from prison.
Investigators found that Dendy’s abuse started before his time teaching in Georgia. Dendy started a catfishing scheme in 2016, while living in Mississippi. He admitted to using nude images to make fake Instagram accounts and talk to students. Dendy would pose as young men or women, to obtain nude photos from underage students at Washington County High School.
In December of 2022, the Washington County Sheriff’s Office says it received complaints about child pornography on another social media platform, Discord. The popular app allows users to create their own forums, called servers, and control who has access. Deputies were told that images shared of high school students were posted without permission, under “WACO Confessions.” Dendy admitted to creating the server under the username “TheOneYouLeftBehind.” He says he wasn’t able to stop, despite knowing that he was doing was wrong. One victim was between 14 and 15 years old.
Before his arrest, law enforcement searched Dendy’s home. They found several devices that stored child sexual abuse material and conversations between Dendy and several victims. Investigators also found evidence that he convinced a 16-year-old to record sexually explicit content and share it with him via social media in January of 2023.
Washington County Sheriff Joel Cochran spoke about Dendy’s arrest:
“Michael Allen Dendy will no longer be able to prey on children and he will be an old man when he is released from prison. We are resolute in our commitment to safeguarding our children and ensuring that those who prey on them are held accountable. I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all law enforcement officers, prosecutors and support personnel who worked tirelessly on this case. Your dedication and hard work have made our community safer and brought us closer to justice for the victims.”
According to the DOJ, the catfishing schemes continued while Dendy taught at St. Charles High School in Waldorf, Maryland (2017-2018) and Griffin High School in Griffin , Georgia (2018-2020). He taught at Washington County High School in Sandersville, Georgia from August of 2020 until Washington County deputies arrested Dendy on January 20, 2023.
If your child may have encountered Dendy and you have concerns related to this investigation, call the Home Land Security Investigations tip line at 1-866-347-2423.
