Tampa Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer

Child porn on social media leads to charges for Florida man

Sep 10, 2017 | Sex Offenses

A Port Charlotte man was taken into custody following a tip from a popular social media platform on August 15 concerning possible child pornography on the site. According to news sources and the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page, the 35-year-old man allegedly used a Twitter account to upload explicit images. He is now facing numerous charges, including one count of distribution of obscene material and 10 counts of possession of child pornography.

A detective with the FBI’s Internet Crimes Against Children task force received the tip, which revealed an account screen name, gmail address and phone number. According to sheriff’s deputies, the detective subsequently identified a Facebook account linked to the same phone number. After review, two images provided by Twitter were identified as child pornography.

Following the preliminary investigation, authorities applied for and were granted a state warrant to search the subscriber’s home located in the 2400 block of Duke Lane. After investigators seized and examined several laptops, desktops and storage devices found at that address, they observed additional child pornographic images. Officials transported the man to the Charlotte County Jail on the basis of the recovered evidence along with additional information that he had reportedly supplied to authorities.

Prison time is only one of the serious consequences that Florida residents may face if convicted on charges connected to sex offenses. A criminal defense may be able to identify deficiencies in the prosecution’s evidence. In some situations, the attorney could possibly achieve a dismissal of the case or negotiate for lesser charges.

Source: Palm Beach Post, “NEW: Florida man accused of posting child porn on Twitter”, Sarah Elsesser, Aug. 29, 2017

Archives

FindLaw Network