NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) – A former sergeant with Newport News Police was sentenced to 25 years in prison for the sexual exploitation of children and receiving child pornography.

According to the State Attorney’s Office, Michael Nicholas Covey, 39, used a child to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct.

Covey was arrested in June 2022 on three counts of sexual exploitation of a child.

On September 22, 2022, Covey pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual exploitation of a child and one count of receipt of child pornography.

Covey had been with the department for 16 years and was recently assigned to the Special Operations K-9 Division prior to his arrest.