A Chicago veterinarian and dog breeder was busted in an FBI case for sharing child pornography and making disturbing comments about his soon-to-be born son.
Adam Stafford King, a veterinary ophthalmologist from Elburn, was charged with knowingly distributing child pornography after a months-long investigation.
The Elburn man has a history of viewing explicit images of children dating back to at least 2017, according to court documents.
The charges stem from an incident that began in September 2023, when King began communicating with a New York man on the gay dating app Scruff.
He and the man alternately spoke via the app and the encrypted messaging service Telegram, with King using the handle “pervchidude.”
Adam Stafford King, pictured in a driver’s license photo, has been charged with knowingly distributing child pornography following an investigation led by the FBI.
The Illinois man is a dog breeder going by the name ‘Askin Havenese’ and was set to appear as a judge for the 2024 Westminster Dog Show
In disturbing messages to a New York informant – whose account was later taken over by the FBI – King expressed his desire to sexually abuse his unborn son and shared photos of baby clothes.
In that communication, King indicated that both men identified themselves as “perverted.” According to the FBI, the term is often used to describe “someone with an interest in pedophilia.”
King discussed his interest in minor children several times. In one message he claimed that ‘single digits’, i.e. children under the age of ten, were his ‘favourite’.
The vet made it clear that he had a preference for boys and girls aged 0-9 years, but had a preference for boys.
The FBI discovered the New Yorker’s messages with King in October 2023, after serving a search warrant on his electrical appliances. The agency eventually gained control of the accounts, with an undercover agent taking on the role of the New York man.
King wrote extensively about his experiences abusing children. In a November 2023 post, he described himself as an “uncle,” adding, “I play with nephews and nieces. I’ve done almost everything.’
He described how he sedated the children before abusing them, writing, “I generally use Benadryl,” noting that it provides a “large margin of safety” and “I usually double an adult dose.”
King also provided several clues about his identity, including that he and his husband were expecting a child via a surrogate mother in the spring.
He clarified that his husband, Lucas, was a “non-perv,” meaning not sexually attracted to children.
The Elburn man wrote extensively about his experiences abusing children, including his nieces and nephews, and explained how he drugged them with Benadryl.
He bragged to the undercover FBI agent about ‘owning a large collection of child pornography’
In some of the most shocking messages, King expressed an interest in sexually abusing his son after he was born.
‘I love the idea of having a buddy over when I have my son… it just has to be someone I can trust of course… I plan on getting my dick in him as soon as possible’ , the man from Elburn wrote.
Twice he suggested that the secret agent should participate in the abuse.
“Maybe you’ll meet my boy,” he wrote. “Maybe I should come visit my son when he’s born.”
On two separate occasions, King shared ultrasound photos of the unborn child. He also shared a photo of baby clothes attached to the complaint.
The vet also bragged about “owning a large collection of child pornography” that he had stored on his Telegram account.
In subsequent conversations between December 2023 and January 2024, King revealed that he was a doctor who specialized in eyes. “I just love eyes,” he once wrote.
In late January, he finally revealed his first name, writing, “Adam here!”
At the time, he was working as an ophthalmologist at MedVet Chicago and had been named chief of the network’s national ophthalmology division.
According to the complaint, King also sent a photo of his penis while wearing blue scrubs.
In March, the FBI executed a federal search warrant at King’s home in Elburn. Despite “multiple verbal announcements of the FBI’s presence,” King remained in the shower on his iPhone, the complaint said.
He declined an interview but provided the passcode on his phone. were stored on that device several images sent via Telegram.
“For example, the FBI discovered the ultrasound photo that the Chicago Subject sent to the New York Subject,” the complaint reads.
King’s husband, Lucas, identified the photo as that of their unborn child and confirmed that the child was expected to be born around March 29.
Lucas and King married in 2016 and settled in a four-bedroom, three-bathroom house in rural Elburn.
The couple met when King was completing his veterinary residency at Colorado State University. Lucas was pastoring a church in Longmont at the time, but has since moved on to churches in Illinois, including one in Aurora.
During a search of King’s home, officers discovered the same baby clothes that had appeared in a photo shared via Telegram
In 2017, police officers questioned the vet after learning he had uploaded two images of suspected child pornography using a Gmail account traced to his home.
A year after the couple married, the Illinois attorney general’s office received a tip that a Gmail user from the state had uploaded two images containing suspected child pornography.
Police traced the IP address to the home King shared with his husband. There, King admitted that he had a Gmail address with the same name and that it was registered to a site he used to view pornography.
According to one report, an officer noted that “During the encounter, Adam appeared very nervous and was hesitant to answer questions.”
The officers ultimately concluded that they “had no legal basis” to search King’s electronics and left.
In addition to his work as a veterinarian, King also breeds Havenese dogs under the name ‘Askin Havanese’. Before the surprising allegations came to light, he was set to serve as a judge for the 2024 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.
The Elburn man received several character letters in his defense. Among his backers were two former classmates, his aunt, his father and his in-laws.
A former classmate, Jessica Ward, wrote, “I am so excited to welcome Adam and Lucas (their son’s name) into their lives, and I am confident they will be exceptional parents surrounded by a wide circle of support from friends and family. family.’
King’s father, John, a former law enforcement officer, described his son as someone who was “not deceitful” and had “an aura of decency and integrity.”
Both of Lucas’ parents wrote a letter in support of their son-in-law.
“We couldn’t be prouder or more supportive of Adam if he were our own son,” it said. “In a world where unfairness, division, hatred and impatience have become far too common, we need more Adam Kings.”
It is unclear what will happen to the couple’s child, who is expected to be delivered by a surrogate mother in Sacramento in the coming days.
Under California law, a surrogate mother must convince the child’s parents to voluntarily give up their rights to the child in order to keep it.