Court docs: Whiteland man admits to trading child porn images online

Michael Ray, 48, is charged with multiple counts of child exploitation, a Level 4 felony, and possession of child pornography, a Level 5 felony.

According to court documents, the investigation into Ray began on March 18 after the Boone County Child Abuse and Sexual Exploitation Task Force was alerted by Facebook of suspected child pornography being uploaded to the website.

Nearly 160 files were flagged by Facebook, which investigators traced back to Ray.

Court documents reveal that messages, allegedly sent by Ray, showed that he was trading child sexual abuse material with other Facebook users.

Investigators claim Ray originally denied trading and viewing child porn. But after allegedly admitting to police that they would find child sexual abuse material on his phone, investigators said he changed his tune and admitted to viewing and trading child porn.

Court documents reveal that Ray allegedly admitted to feeling “excitement” when obtaining child sexual abuse material. He reportedly told investigators that he “rarely” deletes the images and videos and instead saves them.

Further investigation revealed that more than 800 files were saved to a Mega account owned by Ray, according to police. A search of his Telegram account allegedly uncovered that Ray shared more than 2,500 images and/or videos of child porn with more than 30 other accounts.

If convicted of a Level 4 felony, Ray faces up to 12 years in prison.