HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, FL -- The Sheriff's Office has arrested 4 men for online child exploitation.
Detectives conducted ongoing investigations of subjects in Hillsborough County that they identified were using computers via the internet to view, obtain and distribute child pornography.
During the week of June 8, search warrants were executed by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office with the assistance of the Office of the Attorney General's Predator Cyber Task Force.
The child pornography video clips that were possessed and being distributed depict children as young as one to twelve years of age being sexually exploited by adults and others. Some video clips depict children in bondage.
Each one of the suspects was arrested at their residence and their computers were seized.
Michael Head of Gibsonton has been charged with Possession of Marijuana, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Lewd and Lascivious Molestation. Kevin Meere of Valrico and Patrick L. Melton of Tampa are being charged with 14 counts of Possession of Child Pornography. Gregory C. Brown is being charged with 1,500 counts of Possession of Child pornography.
The Lewd and Lascivious charges on Head are from a case in December of 2008 and were directly filed at the State Attorney’s Office. Head is charged with an incident involving an 8 year old male. The victim, who is known to Head, was visiting at Head’s residence when Head touched him in a lewd manner.
