Detectives arrested a Zion man after they conducted a search warrant and found he was in possession of dozens of child sexual abuse videos, with some victims being infants.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said sheriff’s detectives and members of the Illinois Attorney General’s Cybercrime Unit conducted a search warrant in the 2300 block of Joppa Avenue in Zion on Tuesday.
Detectives had launched an investigation after learning images and videos containing child pornography were being downloaded at the residence, Covelli said.
Detectives determined someone was also saving the harmful videos and images to a cloud storage account.
Covelli said detectives determined Christopher J. Abernathy, 37, who lives at the home where the warrant was executed, was responsible for downloading and saving the child pornography images and videos.
Digital forensic examiners with the Illinois Attorney General’s Office conducted an analysis of Abernathy’s electronic devices.
The analysis revealed dozens of videos of children as young as infants being sexually assaulted, Covelli said.
The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office reviewed the case and approved three counts of possession of child pornography, a Class 2 felony. Additional charges are possible.
“We continue to increase our resources devoted to investigating and arresting those engaged in child abuse. Whether it be sexual abuse or physical abuse, we are going to do everything we can to keep our children safe from predators,” Lake County Sheriff John D. Idleburg said.
Abernathy remains held in the Lake County Jail pending a First Appearance Court hearing on Wednesday morning.
The state’s attorney’s office is filing a petition to detain Abernathy in jail while he is awaiting trial.