ARCHIVES

ARCHIVES

Child porn sweep nets 3 arrests

By Adobe Staff

A Nipomo man, a Grover Beach man and a former San Luis Obispo County sheriff’s deputy are among 55 California residents accused of using peer-to-peer networks to exchange child pornography, the U.S. Department of Justice reported Tuesday.

Charged with possession of child pornography are: Jeremy Neubauer, 30, of Nipomo; Bryan David Arnold, 41, of Grover Beach; and Bryan Jon Goossens, 47, of Atascadero.

Goossens was a longtime deputy with the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Department, said department spokesman Rob Bryn.

Goossens was placed on administrative leave due to the allegations, and has since resigned from the department, Bryn said. Goossens worked in the North San Luis Obispo County substation, he said.

Bryn said the Sheriff’s Department has been working with the FBI on the investigation.

Attorney Thomas Merdzinski of San Bernardino was among those charged, according to U.S. Attorney’s Office spokesman Thom Mrozek.

The charges were filed as a result of a coordinated investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the FBI, with assistance from other agencies including the U.S. Secret Service.

The investigation is the first coordinated sweep by law enforcement broadly targeting peer-to-peer users who share child pornography, according to the Department of Justice.

Law enforcement used sophisticated computers to find computers on which child pornography was being stored and made available to others on peer-to-peer networks, the department said.

All 55 defendants are charged with possession of child pornography, and several of them are charged with additional offenses, such as production of child pornography and committing crimes while registered sex offenders.

The charge of possession of child pornography brings a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison, unless the person charged has previously been convicted of a child-exploitation crime, which would mean a minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.