POST FALLS, Idaho – A federal grand jury indicted a man from Post Falls on multiple crimes related to the exploitation of a child on the internet.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, 26-year-old Zachary Perpinan was sharing images of child sex abuse on the dark web.
Perpinan’s alleged crimes were discovered through an undercover investigation.
Investigators say they saw someone posting images of a child, said to be either five or six years old.
Investigators were able to locate the GPS positions from where the postings were made and several of the images went back to a home on Donovan Lane in Post Falls.
Investigators then looked up the address on Zillow and found interior images of the home that matched the background in the images.
The home belongs to Perpinan’s mother.
Investigators found a six-year-old relative of Perpinan’s in the home and took her to safety.
They searched Perpinan’s electronic devices, which they say “contained numerous child sex abuse materials, including images and videos of the six-year-old child.”
Perpinan is now charged with sexual exploitation of a child, production of child pornography, distribution of child sexual abuse materials and possession of child sexual abuse materials.
According to the criminal complaint, Perpinan posted 138 times and uploaded 521 files between August 6 and October 7.
The complaint details disturbing images in which a child was being sexually abused.
According to the criminal complaint, Perpinan admitted that he was posting on the dark web and also admitted to taking pictures of himself abusing the child.
In a news release about the case, U.S. Attorney Bart Davis commended the excellent work of the Post Falls Police Department and the Department of Homeland Security.
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