The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) arrested a Mesa man on Tuesday for downloading and sharing child pornography. MCSO officials report officers served a warrant for Christopher Clark’s personal computer last Tuesday and after finding child pornography files, he was arrested and and detained in jail.
The 54-year-old Mesa man is accused of downloading child porn using a file-sharing program, and then sharing an estimated 920 pornography files using Limewire, a file-to-file sharing website. Sheriff’s detectives report Clark shared these files during a four-month period in 2012 and 2013.
Clark admitted to MCSO deputies that he did download and share files, but did not commit any sexual offenses against children. The files on Clark’s computer showed sexual acts being performed on children between the ages of eight to ten.
MCSO deputies find the discovery of child pornography on Clark’s computer disturbing because not only does his wife watch neighbor’s children at the Clark home, but according to court records, he has minor grandchildren, as well.
Clark faces ten counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and is being held in the Fourth Avenue Jail in Phoenix.
Sexual Exploitation of a Minor (Child Pornography) is a Class 2 felony and is committed if an individual knowingly records, receives, films, photographs, sells or transmits any image of a minor engaged in sexual conduct or exploitive exhibition. When the images include children under the age of fifteen, the crime is then considered a Dangerous Crime Against Children (DCAC), and can result in serious penalties. An image of child pornography in your possession can result in at least a ten year prison sentence.
When you are facing such a serious crime, it is extremely essential to be represented by a knowledgeable Arizona criminal defense lawyer experienced in defending people charges with sexual exploitation of a minor.
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