Sheriff Grady Judd points to an image of Ian Gadd.
A Florida man was singled out by law enforcement over his alleged production of child pornography after four men were arrested in a recent child pornography sting.
Ian Gadd, 23, stands accused of repeatedly sexually abusing a child who “he had access to,” according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
According to law enforcement, some 89 images and videos of children as young as three years of age being sexually abused were discovered on the defendant’s electronic devices after a search warrant was executed at his home in Lakeland, Fla. late last week.
“In those photographs of very young children, what did we find? We found a victim,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said during a press conference on Friday. “Our investigation then led from our folks working child porn investigations to our special victims’ units where this very young child has been sexually battered at least 10 times by this guy. Other lewd conduct between this guy and this very young child.”
According to Tampa Bay-based ABC affiliate WFTS, Gadd was or will be charged with two counts of transmission of child pornography and 89 counts of enhanced possession of child pornography.
In relation to his alleged abuse of the 12-year-old, the defendant will be charged with 11 counts of sexual battery on a child younger than 12 years of age, 10 counts of use of a child in a sexual performance and 10 counts promoting a sexual performance by a child.
Polk County Jail records reviewed by Law&Crime as of this writing, however, suggest the charges have yet to be formally filed.
“Instagram not only blocked him, they reported him to [the National Center for Missing and Endangered Children],” Judd explained during the press conference. “I want to thank Instagram because they reported him. We found a very young baby that he was actively sexually battering and in fact had their photograph.”
The sheriff said that Grady only stopped transmitting child pornography because he was blocked by the social media website.
The three additional suspects arrested in the sting operation–similarly following the execution of search warrants at their homes in order to obtain their electronic devices–are 29-year-old Christian Pillot-Osorio, 23-year-old Billy Rose, and 18-year-old Melvin Lagos, Jr., according to local Fox affiliate WTVT.
Each of the three other defendants are facing charges of 33 counts of enhanced possession of child pornography, 38 counts of enhanced possession of child pornography, and 32 counts of enhanced possession of child pornography, respectively.
Pillot-Osorio allegedly had images of children as young as 5 months being abused on his devices. Rose allegedly had images of children as young as 2 years old being abused on his devices. Lagos allegedly had images of children as young as 8 years old being abused on his devices.
“These suspects, who are the worst of the worst, used common social media apps, like Instagram, Snapchat, and Kik, to transmit and download child pornography,” Judd said. “This is clear proof that these horrific images are easier than ever to find and share. Each time an image is downloaded or shared, the victim in that image is re-victimized.”
Additional charges are expected as the investigation continues, the sheriff’s office said, according to local NBC affiliate WFLA.
[image via screengrab/WTVT]
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