British National And Former Nuclear Energy Program Director For Oak Ridge National Laboratory Pleads Guilty To Sexual Exploitation Of Child In Two States

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - On February 12, 2026, Andrew Worrall, 56, a British national currently residing in Knox County, Tennessee, entered a guilty plea to one count of sexual exploitation of a child in the Eastern District of Tennessee and one count of sexual exploitation of a child in the District of South Carolina. Sentencing has been set for June 24, 2026, in United States District Court at Knoxville.

Worrall faces a term of up to 60 years in Federal prison, $500,000 in fines, restitution, forfeiture, special assessments and up to a lifetime on supervised release.

As part of the written plea agreement, Worrall agreed to forfeit his home in the Eastern District of Tennessee. Further, Worral agreed he is a removable alien and will waive any form of relief of removal from the United States after his incarceration portion of his sentence is completed.

According to documents filed in the case, Worrall contacted a 17-year-old minor female on the Snapchat application using the internet in July 2025. Knowing the age of the child, Worrall requested nude pictures of the child. The child complied. Worrall then requested the child insert a foreign object into her body and send a video. The child complied.

On the same day, Worrall contacted another 17-year-old minor female who resided in South Carolina using his Snapchat account. Worrall had similar communications with the child, asking to prove she was real by sending him pictures. After the victim complied he requested the victim masturbate on video for Worrall's pleasure. The child complied.

U.S. Attorney Francis M. Hamilton III of the Eastern District of Tennessee; U.S. Attorney Bryan P. Stirling of the District of South Carolina; and Assistant Inspector General for Investigations Lewe Sessions of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Inspector General made the announcement.

This prosecution is the result of an investigation by the United States Department of Energy, Office of the Inspector General.

Jennifer Kolman and Dean H. Secor, Assistant United States Attorneys represented the United States.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006, by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney's Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about PSC, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

For more information about internet safety education, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc/resources.html and click on the tab "resources."

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