GAINESVILLE, FL (352today.com) – The Gainesville Police Department (GPD) say they arrested a man Monday for soliciting child pornography.
Police shared in a Facebook post that they arrested 24-year-old Vern Most Jr. after they received a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). They say the tip stated that the user was distributing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) through a social platform.
Authorities executed a search warrant of Most’s apartment located at The Polos in Gainesville. After searching through his electronic devices, they say they found CSAM images and also a conversation between Most and a 15-year-old, with whom he shared images of himself.
During an interview, authorities say Most told them that his accounts were “hacked” and that CSAM was shared from them.
GPD says he also told them that one of the hackers was communicating with the 15-year-old previously mentioned, and that the hacker was “soliciting explicit” content from them. Police say Most eventually admitted that he was “probably” the one with the CSAM and communicating with the minor but stated that he could not remember.
Most was arrested on six counts of possession of child pornography, one count of distribution of child pornography, one count of transmission of harmful material to minors, one count of solicitation of a minor, and one count of lawful use of a two-way communication device.
According to jail records, he is being held on a $300,000 bond at the Alachua County Jail.
GPD warned parents in the Facebook post that many children are exploited and being solicited through social networking/messaging apps such as Facebook, Kik, Snapchat, TikTok and Tagged. They say they are used to share images and videos depicting young children being sexually abused. They are asking you to be aware of the social networking and messaging apps your children are using.