Multi-agency effort leads to arrest of Kokomo man on child exploitation charges

KOKOMO, Ind. — Police have arrested a Kokomo man accused of possessing child pornography following an investigation that involved three law enforcement agencies.

According to a news release, officers with the Kokomo Police Department, the Howard County Sheriff’s Office and the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department executed a joint child exploitation investigation after receiving three cybertips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

The investigation led detectives to 40-year-old Thomas Cook after a search warrant was approved at a residence in the 1500 block of Tedlee Drive, KPD said. During the search warrant, KPD deployed its new Electronic Detection K9 Gelid.

Cook was arrested and transported to the Howard County Criminal Justice Center, where he faces a level 4 felony charge for child exploitation and child pornography, which is a level 5 felony.