St. Helens man indicted on child sex abuse charges

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A St. Helens man was arrested following a report that an unknown individual had uploaded child sex abuse material onto a social media site, officials say.

A Columbia County Grand Jury indicted 46-year-old Lucas Dean Greenwell on Oct. 23 on eight counts of encouraging child abuse in the first degree and six counts of encouraging child abuse in the second degree. 

Greenwell was arrested in the 200 block of South Fifth Street in St. Helens on Monday, according to a St. Helens Police Department Facebook post.

The arrest comes after a six-month investigation by the St. Helens Police Department and the Oregon Department of Justice. In May, detectives received a report from the Internet Crimes Against Children task force alerting them that an unknown individual uploaded the material on social media. During the investigation, detectives executed multiple search warrants and seized multiple digital devices. 

According to court documents obtained by KOIN 6 News, Greenwell is accused of uploading multiple images “while knowing or being aware of and consciously disregarding the fact that the creation of the visual recording of sexually explicit conduct involved child abuse.”

Greenwell was booked into the Columbia County Jail. His arraignment has not yet been scheduled.