A Federal Way man has been accused of knowingly engaging in sexual contact with a 15-year-old female he met over Snapchat.
Daniel B. Woody, 28, is charged with two counts of third-degree rape of a child and single counts of first-degree possession of depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct, communication with a minor for immoral purposes and supplying liquor to a minor.
Of the charges, Woody faces the greatest potential sentence of up to 10 years in prison for the first-degree possession of depictions of a minor.
Woody made a preliminary appearance in Lewis County Superior Court on Thursday, March 19.
During the hearing, Judge Joely Yeager maintained the $500,000 bail she set in Woody’s arrest warrant, saying the allegations presented a significant risk to community safety.
Yeager granted the state’s request for a sexual assault protection order on behalf of the victim, along with conditions prohibiting Woody from contacting minor children or locations where minor children are known to congregate. Woody was also prohibited from using electronic devices.
Senior Deputy Prosecutor Scott Jackson noted that police are investigating more instances where Woody may have contacted minors using such devices.
Defense attorney Rachael Tiller said that Woody has no previous felony convictions and nothing similar on his record.
Yeager replied that defendants often have no criminal history in cases such as these.
The Chehalis Police Department issued a news release roughly two hours before the hearing that detailed elements of the case against Woody.
According to the release, police were first advised of the possible crimes in early March.
“During the investigation officers learned that a 28-year-old male resident of Federal Way, Daniel B. Woody, had engaged in sexually explicit conversations with a juvenile female which included juvenile pornographic material being exchanged,” the release states. “Woody then travelled to Chehalis on two separate occasions and had sexual contact with the juvenile victim.”
According to the probable cause affidavit filed by the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office, the victim told police that Woody first connected with her on Snapchat in June or July of 2025.
The victim indicated that Woody was aware she was 14 years old at the time.
After a couple of weeks, the victim “became uncomfortable and decided to block Woody on Snapchat, preventing further contact,” before later unblocking him and resuming communication, according to the affidavit.
The victim told police she and Woody first met in person in December 2025, where they engaged in sexual contact. They met again on Feb. 13, 2026.
During the second incident, Woody allegedly left at one point and returned with alcohol.
According to the affidavit, the victim reported that she and Woody had “kept in touch” and discussed meeting again. Woody had allegedly invited her to his Federal Way residence.
The victim told police she believed Woody had saved sexually explicit pictures on his cell phone, saying that “Snapchat notifies her when someone saves a picture to their personal camera roll,” according to the affidavit.
The victim further reported that “Woody would talk about drugging her, taking her out to the woods, tying her, and raping her,” according to the affidavit.
On March 18, Chehalis and Federal Way police, along with officers from the state Department of Corrections, executed a search warrant at Woody’s residence.
“Woody was taken into custody and multiple electronic communication devices were seized,” the Chehalis Police Department stated in its release.
The department said the case was still under investigation.
Woody was scheduled for an arraignment on March 26. He will look to retain private counsel.
