Former Highway Patrol trooper indicted for allegedly capturing nude images of women

A former state Highway Patrol trooper has been indicted for alleged civil rights crimes.

A release from Sayler Fleming, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri, says a federal grand jury indicted David McKnight, 39, on nine counts of deprivation of rights under color of law, “namely the right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure” and one count of destroying records in a federal investigation.

The indictment alleges between Sept. 1, 2023, and Aug. 19, McKnight took cellphones from nine women after he had stopped them, most for alleged traffic violations, “under the auspices of confirming that they had insurance or verifying their identification” and searched the phones for nude pictures. The indictment says McKnight then used his phone to take pictures of those pictures, later deleting them from his phone.

The release does not indicate how authorities became aware of the alleged crimes.

A July 2021 release from the Highway Patrol says McKnight of Sikeston had been appointed to Troop E, Zone 7, covering Mississippi, New Madrid and Scott counties. The release said McKnight is a graduate of Scott County Central High School and had formerly worked as a patrol officer for Sikeston Department of Public Safety.

McKnight, who resigned from the Highway Patrol in August, is facing similar charges in Scott and New Madrid counties.

Authorities ask anyone with information about the case to contact the FBI, (800) CALL-FBI or via https://tips.fbi.gov.

The state Highway Patrol and the FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Krug is prosecuting the case.