A 72-year-old registered sex offender faces possession of child pornography charges after authorities said they found explicit material on his laptop computer and cell phone.
Members of the Internet Crimes Against Children Unit on Friday interviewed Harold Benedict, who the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office described as a registered sexual predator in a statement issued Sunday. Benedict, of Crestview, was booked into the Okaloosa County Jail Friday.
The investigation began June 27, 2022 after a man found child sexual abuse material involving children on a laptop that he had been given, according to a police report. The man told investigators that he and his two children had been fishing near Pioneer and Antioch roads in Crestview when he began talking to a man in an SUV. The man, later identified as Benedict, said he had run out of gas and was waiting for help from a friend. When the man offered to help, Benedict insisted on repaying and gave the man his laptop, the arrest report stated.
The laptop computer was turned over to the OCSO. Authorities executed a search warrant and found five files containing child sexual abuse material with children who appeared to range from about 4-to-6 years old to about 12-to-14 years old, according to the report. When interviewed by investigators Friday, Benedict admitted to owning the laptop computer, authorities said. His cell phone also contained child pornography material He also informed investigators that he had additional computer equipment and personal belonging in a storage unit in Crestview, the statement said.Benedict was arrested and charged with possession of child pornography and use of a two-way communication device to facilitate a felony.Download the FOX10 Weather App.
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