SILVER SPRINGS, FL (352today.com) – The Marion County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) arrested a 47-year-old man on 20 counts of possession of child pornography.
MCSO says on Wednesday, October 4, an Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) detective arrested Richard Heaton at his home.
MCSO says Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) alerted ICAC that Heaton responded to an undercover ad posted on a social media platform.
“Heaton corresponded with a law enforcement officer who was pretending to be the father of a 13-year-old girl,” said MCSO in a Facebook post. “Heaton offered to teach the presumed 13-year-old girl about a variety of sexual acts and said he would provide this service without charge, but that he would take photos and videos of her for his private collection.”
Law enforcement got a search warrant for Heaton’s home, located at 4892 NE 32nd St, Apt. 1, in Silver Springs. There they seized Heaton’s laptop and cell phone.
MCSO says forensic extraction of the devices uncovered a large collection of files that depicted child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Heaton’s jail booking indicates that each of the 20 charges he faces is for possessing 10 or more child porn images.
MCSO says they believe Heaton had similar contact with children and are asking for anyone with information to contact the investigator at (352) 368-3586.