Key Takeaways:

• Homeland Security Investigations held a key phone for over two years before review.
• The HSI investigation delayed local police from acting on child abuse claims.
• Two minor victims could not get timely justice while evidence stayed sealed.
• Federal agents charged the suspect with child pornography and Jan. 6 offenses.

HSI Investigation and the Delay of Evidence

Two months after the U.S. Capitol attack on January 6, 2021, North Carolina resident David Paul Daniel met Mint Hill police. They questioned him about claims he sexually abused a girl and took naked photos over four years. Daniel denied wrongdoing, but officers seized his phone. They sent it to Homeland Security Investigations, or HSI, under a judge’s search warrant.

However, HSI agents did not open the phone until after Daniel’s November 2023 arrest on January 6 charges. By then, a second minor had come forward eighty miles away. The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office began its own probe. Now, Daniel faces federal counts for producing and possessing child pornography, plus sexual exploitation of a minor.

Why the HSI investigation took so long

Homeland Security Investigations is a branch of the Department of Homeland Security that handles serious crimes crossing state or national lines. In this case, police believed the phone could hold proof of child abuse. Yet HSI left the device untouched at its Charlotte office from March 2021 until December 2023. Investigators only viewed its contents days after FBI agents arrested Daniel on January 6 charges.

Because of this delay, Mint Hill police could not push their case forward. Meanwhile, a second victim’s mother reported abuse from summer 2022. Forsyth deputies interviewed the girl in May 2023, but they too lacked key digital proof. Only after HSI finally unlocked the phone could prosecutors link images to both alleged victims.

How the delay affected the victims

First, a girl told Mint Hill officers that from 2015 to 2019, Daniel assaulted her repeatedly. She described forced oral sex and naked photographs. Then, a second girl in Winston-Salem said Daniel had sex with her in 2022. Without quick access to the phone evidence, police could not build a strong case.

For more than two years, crucial images and messages sat unseen. Victims and their families waited while HSI agents prioritized other tasks. As a result, alleged crimes remained unprosecuted until federal agents moved on Daniel for his role in the Capitol riot.

Federal charges against Daniel

In November 2023, FBI agents arrested Daniel at home on charges of violent entry and disorderly conduct tied to January 6. Around the same time, Homeland Security Investigations finally reviewed the 2021 phone. Investigators found images of a minor with exposed lower body parts. The evidence led to new federal counts:

• Production of child pornography
• Possession and receipt of child pornography
• Sexual exploitation of a minor

Daniel pleaded not guilty. A U.S. magistrate judge ordered him held, noting the government’s evidence “is compelling.” The judge cited testimony that suggested Daniel abused two young girls in his family.

Other January 6 defendants facing sex charges

Daniel is among several Capitol rioters pardoned by former President Trump who later faced sex crime allegations. For example:

John Emanuel Banuelos shot into the air at the Capitol. He was arrested in Chicago in 2025 on aggravated kidnapping and sexual assault charges from 2018. DNA linked him to those crimes.

Andrew Paul Johnson pleaded guilty to entering the Capitol. Florida charged him with molesting an 11-year-old. He tried to pay the child’s silence with Jan. 6 “reparations.”

Army veteran Dillon Herrington hurled a lumber beam at police. He pleaded guilty to assaulting officers and later faced a rape charge in Alabama.

Theodore Middendorf destroyed government property on January 6. Illinois sentenced him to 19 years for assaulting a child under 13.

Each case shows how a federal probe into one crime can uncover other alleged offenses.

What Daniel’s defense claims

Daniel’s court-appointed lawyer argues he only faces child exploitation counts because of the massive January 6 investigation. The lawyer wrote that other pardoned rioters saw separate charges dropped when unrelated probes arose. He said Daniel’s case differs only because it involves “politically unsavory” child abuse allegations.

The filing states the pardon “cannot be regarded as encompassing child exploitation.” Daniel seeks an evidentiary hearing to dismiss the new counts. He claims authorities never intended to track the earlier state investigation. Instead, his lawyer says, they moved on child claims only after the Jan. 6 probe led to the phone search warrant.

What experts and prosecutors say

Prosecutors disagree with Daniel’s defense. They point to an FBI affidavit by Special Agent Chase Bannister. It shows Mint Hill officers did not abandon their inquiry. They simply waited for HSI to complete its tasks. During “operational coordination” before Daniel’s arrest, investigators learned of the minor abuse probe.

Moreover, the magistrate judge called the child abuse evidence “compelling.” He noted Daniel’s ex-wife appeared in court to ask that he remain held. U.S. Attorney’s Office officials say they do not comment on charging choices. Yet they stress each decision follows legal standards and reviews at the Department of Justice.

Looking ahead

Daniel’s motion to dismiss remains pending. His lawyer maintains the government would not have prosecuted child exploitation without the Jan. 6 search warrant. But untold victims waited while HSI agents processed other cases. Now, with charges set to move forward, both federal January 6 counts and child exploitation counts will proceed.

This case underscores how a single investigation can trigger many others. It also shows the real impact of bureaucratic delays on alleged victims. As Daniel awaits trial, questions linger about how agencies share evidence and serve justice.

FAQs

What happened with the phone evidence?

Mint Hill police seized Daniel’s phone in early 2021. They gave it to HSI, which did not open it until December 2023. This delayed child abuse investigations.

Why did HSI investigation take over two years?

HSI handles many digital evidence cases. In this instance, agents prioritized other work, so they left the phone unexamined for 33 months.

How did the delay affect the two victims?

Investigators had no digital proof for both girls until late 2023. As a result, authorities could not advance local child abuse charges in timely fashion.

Will Daniel face both January 6 and child exploitation trials?

Yes. He faces federal counts for his role in the Capitol attack and separate counts for producing and possessing child pornography. He has pleaded not guilty.