LaVera pleads guilty to child porn charge

DES MOINES — A California man accused of possessing child pornography has pleaded guilty to the charge as part of a plea deal.

David A. LaVera, 33, appeared in the U.S. District Courthouse in Des Moines for a hearing Thursday afternoon, after initially canceling the plea hearing.

As part of the agreement, an additional charge of sexual exploitation of a child-production of child pornography was dropped.

LaVera is expected to serve more than five years in prison as part of the agreement, however, his sentencing will take place June 5 in Des Moines.

The court documents released in August said LaVera, who impersonated an actor from "Twilight," used his smartphone to video a 12-year-old victim taking a shower and a 13-year-old victim using the bathroom at a Newton home. According to court documents, LaVera later uploaded that video onto his laptop computer for viewing.

The 33-year-old California man was charged locally in June 2014 after allegedly using his celebrity status to entice a 14-year-old girl to a park in Baxter after having sexually explicit conversations with the teen on Facebook. While at the park, LaVera is accused of touching the teen inappropriately and then luring her into his vehicle. He allegedly drove her around Baxter until concerned family and friends, who had reported a kidnapping, were able to stop the vehicle and get the girl out of the car.

When stopped by police, LaVera was found with a sword longer than 8 inches hidden in the driver’s side door jam, which was within the defendant’s reach. LaVera also had four double-edged daggers in the vehicle’s center console within his reach.

LaVera is also scheduled to face four state charges including third-degree sexual abuse, enticement of a minor, attempting to entice a minor and carrying weapons. A trial date has been scheduled for April 15 in the Jasper County Courthouse.