Scott County Emergency Management Captain Arrested for Possessing Child Pornography
| U.S. Attorney’s Office June 17, 2009 |
LEXINGTON, KY—A Scott County emergency management captain was arrested today pursuant to a federal criminal complaint that charges him with possessing images of child pornography.
According to an affidavit submitted by a detective from the Georgetown Police Department, Eric Dwayne Westerfield, 35, from Georgetown, Ky. admitted he used the file sharing program LimeWire to download images of child pornography.
The affidavit alleges that a DVD seized by authorities from Westerfield’s residence in March contained approximately eight images of children as young as 10 years old engaged in sexually explicit conduct. In addition, a Kentucky State Police (KSP) detective conducted a forensic exam on Westerfield’s computer and allegedly discovered three images of suspected child exploitation.
According to the affidavit, the investigation started in September of 2008, when a KSP detective had performed a forensic exam on the computer of 28-year-old Walter Hardin of Magoffin County. The detective discovered sexually explicit chats about minor females on Yahoo between Hardin and another individual. A further investigation revealed that Hardin’s chats were with Westerfield.
Hardin pleaded guilty to coercing a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct and receiving child pornography in March of this year.
James Zerhusen, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, William Reeves, Chief of Georgetown Police and Rodney Brewer, Kentucky State Police Commissioner, Timothy Cox , Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation jointly made the announcement today.
The investigation was conducted by Georgetown Police, FBI and Kentucky State Police. Assistant United States Attorney Erin May will represent the United States in this case.
Westerfield will appear in U.S. District Court in Lexington on Monday at 3:00 for a probable cause and detention hearing. If convicted on the charge of possessing child pornography, Westerfield faces a maximum prison sentence of 10 years. However, the court is obligated to consider the federal statute and the United States Sentencing Guidelines before imposing a sentence.
An indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant should be presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.