Thomas Shannon is accused of communicating with at least 21 girls, soliciting them for explicit photos and videos, and possessing child pornography.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A West Michigan orthodontist, Thomas Shannon, has agreed to plead guilty in federal court to two counts of sexual exploitation of a minor or attempted sexual exploitation of a minor.
Shannon ran Shannon Orthodontics, which had locations in both Grandville and Plainwell. The practices have been shut down, however, since Shannon’s initial arrest in 2023.
Shannon’s initial arrest came after a lengthy investigation, after which he faced the following state charges:
- Child Sexually Abusive Material – Aggravated Possession – 2 counts
- Sexually Abusive Material – Possession – 2 counts
- Computers – Using to Commit a Crime (10-20yr felony) – 2 counts
- Computers – Using to Commit a Crime (4-10yr felony)- 2 counts
Shannon was out on a $20,000 bond for those charges in August of 2025, when new charges came down and he was arrested once again.
The new charges were from the federal level. The state charges were dropped as the federal charges encompassed all crimes Shannon is accused of.
Court documents allege Shannon had been communicating with different underage girls online, asking them to send him sexually explicit photos and videos, sometimes in exchange for money. There are 21 victims listed in court documents, ranging from age 12 to 17.
Most of the communications took place while Shannon was in Kent County, while some took place while he was on his boat in Ottawa County.
Court documents detailed some of Shannon’s communications with the girls. He communicated with them through Snapchat, OmeTV, FaceTime and text messaging.
Through investigation, authorities found numerous files of explicit child pornography on Shannon’s phone. Some of which depicted 10-year-olds having sex with each other and victims as young as infants.
As part of his guilty plea, Shannon forfeits his cell phone and boat to the authorities. Shannon could face 15 to 60 years in prison, with a fine up to $250,000. If and when released, he would face a required supervised release of 5 years to life.
Shannon will also be required to register as a sex offender. His next court date is Oct. 31 for an official Change of Plea Hearing.
