LaPorte County- The Indiana State Police Criminal Investigations Division at the Lowell Post received a cyber tip of an individual that was possessing and sharing images of child pornography. During the investigation, detectives determined that the suspect had been using the social media platforms of Snapchat and Discord to obtain and share the images. A thorough investigation showed that the images were being sent from an individual in Michigan City. The suspect was determined to be William H. King III, 21, from Michigan City, IN. A warrant was issued for Mr. King’s arrest for the charge of Child Exploitation, a level 5 felony. Mr. King turned himself in to the LaPorte County Jail on June 4th and is currently being held on a $15,000 cash bond.
The Indiana State Police will continue to aggressively investigate and pursue these child exploitation crimes and crimes against children. The Indiana ICAC Task Force encourages Hoosiers to report online exploitation, solicitation, and enticement-type crimes against children to NCMEC. The NCMEC website can be accessed through the ICAC Task Force website. NCMEC is a private, non-profit organization providing services nationwide to families and law enforcement officials relating to the prevention of abduction and sexual exploitation of children. To report a crime with your child as a victim involving the internet or other electronic means, please contact your local Indiana law enforcement agency.
ICAC Taskforce website: https://www.in.gov/isp/icactf/
All suspects are presumed to be innocent until/unless proven guilty in court.