STAFF REPORT :::
A Spalding County man, 29-year-old Brandon Smith, has been arrested and charged with multiple counts of sexual exploitation of a child.
Smith’s arrest follows an investigation conducted by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes (CEACC) Unit.
Smith is charged with two counts of sexual exploitation of children for the alleged possession of child sexual abuse material and two counts of sexual exploitation of children for the alleged distribution of child sexual abuse material.
The GBI CEACC Unit began an investigation into Smith’s online activity after receiving a cybertip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding the online possession of images depicting child sexual abuse material.
The investigation led to the execution of a search warrant at Smith’s Spalding County residence and his subsequent arrest.
Smith was found and arrested in Jasper County but was taken directly to the Spalding County Jail.
The Spalding County Sheriff’s Office and the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office assisted with this case.
This investigation is part of the ongoing effort by the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, housed within the GBI’s CEACC Unit to identify those involved in the child pornography trade. The ICAC Program, created by the U.S. Department of Justice, was developed in response to the increasing number of children and teenagers using the internet, the proliferation of child sexual abuse material and the heightened online activity by predators searching for unsupervised contact with underage victims.
Anyone with information about other cases of child exploitation is asked to contact the GBI Child Exploitation Unit at 404.270.8870.
Anonymous tips can also be submitted by calling 1.800.597-TIPS(8477), online at https://gbi.georgia.gov/submit-tips-online or by downloading the See Something, Send Something mobile app.
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