Former Havelock city commissioner convicted on child pornography charges

CRAVEN COUNTY, N.C. (WITN) - A former Havelock city commissioner has been convicted on child pornography charges.

Peter Van Vliet, 42, pleaded guilty to 12 counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor.

District Attorney Scott Thomas says Van Vliet will serve five years on probation. Thomas says he requested an active prison sentence, but the judge imposed a supervised probation based upon evidence. If Van Vliet violates his probation, he will be sentenced anywhere from 2 to 7.5 years in prison.

Van Vliet arrested in December and charged with multiple counts of child pornography. According to arrest warrants obtained by WITN, the SBI says they found computer video files of children, some possibly as young as two years old, engaged in various sex acts with other children, as well as adults.

The D.A. says Van Vliet pled guilty to downloading child pornography.

Van Vliet was a city commissioner since 2014. He also used to coach youth lacrosse, cross country, and junior varsity basketball at Annunciation Catholic School. The Diocese of Raleigh told WITN that Van Vliet hadn’t coached at the school since March 2019.

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