Former Washington Co. Sheriff’s deputy charged with allegedly creating CSAM of children

SPRINGVILLE, Utah (ABC4) — A Springville man who previously worked for the Washington County Sheriff’s Office has been charged with 15 felonies after detectives discovered he was allegedly creating child sexual abuse material (CSAM) of two children.

The 43-year-old man, whom ABC4 is not identifying to protect the victims, has been charged with 10 counts of aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, a first-degree felony, and five counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, a second-degree felony.

On April 14, 2024, the Utah County Sheriff’s Office (UCSO) received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children regarding a user who had uploaded CSAM to an online account.

A detective with the UCSO investigated the tip and determined that CSAM had been uploaded by the account. An email and phone number were associated, and search warrants served on the email address located “numerous” CSAM files.

Through this investigation, the UCSO detective identified the 43-year-old man and began conducting surveillance on his residence. On July 15, 2025, a search warrant was executed on the man’s home, during which he was taken into custody without incident, documents say.

Two children were at the home, both under the age of 14, and an adult female, not identified by police, arrived to take custody of the two young children after the man was detained.

During an interview with the 43-year-old, he allegedly confirmed that the phone number was his, and he had been using it for more than 15 years. He also stated that he does not share his phone with anyone else.

Documents say that he was a former Washington County Sheriff’s deputy, but had not been employed there for some time. A LinkedIn profile that appears to belong to the man shows that he left the sheriff’s office around 2008.

The 43-year-old man also allegedly admitted to owning the email account, but declined to answer any questions regarding CSAM files located on it.

Detectives began searching the man’s cell phone as part of the search warrant and located “a large quantity of CSAM,” including multiple images and videos of the two children at the home. CSAM files not involving the two children were also located.

The photos of the children were as recent as one week before July 15. A UCSO detective made contact with the adult female who had custody of the two children, and she stated that she was unaware of the 43-year-old possessing CSAM, but had previously discovered that he had hidden cameras inside his residence.

The two children completed interviews at the Utah County Children’s Justice Center, and neither disclosed any abuse. Documents say that they were likely unaware that the man had taken inappropriate photos and videos of them.

The 43-year-old man was arrested and booked into the Utah County Jail, where he is currently being held without bail.