A cyber tip led to the arrest of a 36-year-old Gainesville man after he was accused of uploading images depicting child pornography to an online account.
The Gainesville Police Department stated that the investigation was prompted after officers received a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. According to the tip, the user of a cloud storage service had uploaded and saved child sexual abuse material on their platform.
GPD detectives launched an investigation and discovered that the images had been uploaded and saved from an account that was believed to be owned by Adrian Alan Jones.
Jones resided at an apartment complex located in the 2300 block of SW 43rd Street in Gainesville. On Thursday, June 22, the GPD Internet Crimes Against Children Division served a search warrant at the apartment with assistance from the police department’s SWAT team.
Investigators made contact with Jones at his apartment. After being read his Miranda rights, Jones admitted that he owned the online account in question. He stated that he typically searches for “teen porn” when looking for pornography, though he claimed that he is actually looking for “college-age individuals,” according to GPD.
During the post-Miranda interview, Jones claimed that he had “no recollection” as to how images of child pornography had been stored on his account. GPD stated that Jones further claimed to be unaware of what he “saved or looked for when he was intoxicated.”
Investigators searched Jones’ electronic devices while at his apartment. According to GPD, numerous images of child sexual abuse material were discovered on those devices.
Jones was arrested and transported to Alachua County Jail. He is facing felony charges for possession of child pornography (eight counts).
In a social media post, the Gainesville Police Department stated that it “wants parents to be aware that children are being solicited and exploited through social networking and messaging apps.”
The police department added, “We encourage parents to have age-appropriate conversations with their children about the dangers of the internet. Please be vigilant and aware of any social networking platforms your children may access.”
For more information, visit the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s website.