Airman at Shaw Air Force Base is charged with child sex crimes, officials say

A member of the Air Force stationed in the Midlands was arrested for sexually exploiting minors by possessing child pornography, officials said.

David Wayne Crouse, a 37-year-old Sumter resident, was charged with five counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, according to South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson.

The airman assigned to the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw Air Force Base was arrested, Capt. Madeline Krpan told The State Wednesday. Technical Sgt. Crouse has served in the Air Force for 19 years and has been stationed at Shaw for 4 years, according to Krpan.

Crouse was taken into custody Monday, after investigators received a CyberTipline report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the Attorney General’s Office said in a news release.

That led investigators to Crouse, who had files of child sexual abuse material, according to the release.

Bond was set at $25,000 on the combined charges, Sumter County court records show.

If convicted on the felony charges, Crouse faces a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison on each count, according to South Carolina law.

This case will be prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office.

Members of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force with the Attorney General’s Office made the arrest. Some of those members, including the Shaw Air Force Base Office of Special Investigations and Sumter Police Department, assisted in the investigation, the Attorney General’s Office said.

Despite the arrest, an investigation is ongoing and Shaw Air Force Base is cooperating with local authorities and the Attorney General’s Office, according to Krpan.

There was no word if Crouse will face any punishment from the Air Force.

The 20th Fighter Wing is the largest and most active F-16 unit in the Air Force. It has roots in World War I, was formed in World War II, has fought in every major U.S. conflict since, and has often been the “tip of spear” in the recent wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan.