Child pornography case; Racine man charged, cash bond $25,000
Ernesto Roman
RACINE, Wis. - A tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children led to the arrest of an 18-year-old Racine man on April 14.
What we know:
Investigators with the Racine County Sheriff’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) unit were able to determine Ernesto Roman uploaded Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), commonly referred to as child pornography, to his WhatsApp account.
On April 14, investigators executed a search warrant on Roman's residence in Racine. During the search, investigators located numerous electronic devices that are being forensically examined by the Sheriff’s computer analyst.
With the assistance of a bilingual deputy – Roman only speaks Spanish – investigators interviewed Roman, who stated he only searched for adult pornography while on WhatsApp and other people sent him CSAM.
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According to the Racine County Sheriff's Office, Roman’s statement was inconsistent with the tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children which showed Roman was uploading, or sharing, CSAM he possessed with other users.
What's next:
Investigators arrested Roman and transported him to the Racine County Jail. The Racine County District Attorney’s Office charged Roman with six counts of Possession of Child Pornography.
Roman made his initial appearance in court on April 15. Cash bond was set at $25,000. His preliminary hearing is set for April 23.
The Source: The information in this report was provided by the Racine County Sheriff's Office.