A Republican member of the West Virginia House of Delegates who also worked as a public school teacher faces a federal enticement charge after investigators say he used an online children's gaming platform to begin a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old student.
Federal authorities arrested David Elliott Pritt, 36, this week on a charge of enticement of a minor. A probable cause affidavit reviewed by Fox News Digital alleges Pritt first contacted the girl on Roblox, a gaming platform overwhelmingly popular with children, while she was his eighth-grade student during the 2024, 25 school year in Fayette County, West Virginia. Investigators say the conversations moved to Snapchat, grew "increasingly personal," and ended with Pritt telling the girl he loved her.
Pritt has represented Fayette County's District 50 in the state House of Delegates since 2022. He won the seat as a Democrat and switched to the Republican Party in 2023. He was also employed as a teacher in the Fayette County school system, first at a middle school and later at a local high school, where the alleged abuse continued inside his own classroom.
The federal affidavit lays out a timeline spanning more than a year. Prosecutors allege Pritt used interstate communications between May 2025 and July 2026 to persuade, induce, or entice the girl to engage in illegal sexual activity and to produce child sexual abuse material, both violations of West Virginia law.
During the summer of 2025, Pritt allegedly sent the girl a sexually explicit photograph of himself over Snapchat and asked her to send nude photographs in return. She told investigators she complied. He allegedly continued requesting sexually explicit images through July 2026 and urged her not to tell anyone.
After the 2024, 25 school year ended, both Pritt and the girl moved to a local high school. The affidavit states Pritt repeatedly asked the girl to meet him in his classroom. She told investigators she performed sexual acts on him there approximately five to ten times, with the final encounter occurring around December 2025 or January 2026.
The girl's family reported the allegations to law enforcement on July 9. Pritt was arrested days later.
The affidavit captures statements Pritt allegedly made to the girl as the relationship continued. He warned her that if police found out, officers would seize their phones and, in his words:
"open up h*** in our lives."
He also allegedly told her the allegations "would be in the news" and added:
"I would lose my entire life."
Those statements, if proven, suggest Pritt understood the criminal nature of his conduct and actively worked to keep it hidden. A man who holds public office and stands in a position of authority over children told a 15-year-old girl that silence was the price of protecting his career.
West Virginia House Speaker Roger Hanshaw moved quickly after the arrest. He removed Pritt from his House roles, described by a spokesperson as "the only administrative action currently available", and publicly urged Pritt to resign.
Hanshaw called the allegations "shocking, disgusting and disappointing in every way." In a separate statement, the Speaker added:
"My heart aches for his family, and if any part of these serious allegations are true, the law should be applied in full force."
A spokesperson for Hanshaw told Fox News Digital that House leadership is reviewing the constitutional process for expulsion, which would require the support of two-thirds of elected House members. No expulsion vote has been scheduled.
Fayette County Schools did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Whether the district took any employment action against Pritt before or after his arrest remains unclear, as does whether he was still teaching at the time federal agents took him into custody.
Roblox is a gaming platform used primarily by children and young teenagers. It is not a dating app. It is not a social media site built for adult interaction. It is a place where kids play games. That a sitting state lawmaker and classroom teacher allegedly used it to initiate contact with a student he already had authority over makes the charge especially disturbing.
The progression described in the affidavit follows a textbook grooming pattern: contact on a platform the child already uses, migration to a more private channel, in this case Snapchat, escalation of emotional language, solicitation of explicit material, in-person sexual contact, and then threats designed to enforce silence.
Pritt held two positions of trust simultaneously, elected representative and public school teacher. Both roles carry legal and ethical obligations to protect the people they serve, especially minors. If the allegations in the federal affidavit hold up, he exploited both positions to gain access to a child and then leveraged fear to cover his tracks.
Pritt's booking photo was provided by the Carter County Detention Center. He faces a federal charge of enticement of a minor. No plea or public statement from Pritt has been reported.
Party affiliation does not grant immunity, and it should not soften the response. When someone entrusted with public authority and the care of children is accused of predatory conduct backed by a federal affidavit, the only appropriate answer is the one Speaker Hanshaw gave: the law should be applied in full force.
