EAST ALTON - The East Alton Police Department is searching for a man currently living out-of-state regarding five Class X child pornography charges.
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Thomas Sweeney, 28, formerly of East Alton and Roxana, was charged with five counts of child pornography possession and distribution, all Class X felonies due to the apparent age of the victims in the documents, Major Christian Cranmer of the East Alton Police Department said. The charges root from completed forensics on electronic devices seized from Sweeney's house in 2016. Cranmer said Sweeney has since moved out of state.
Cranmer said the East Alton Police Department was notified of Sweeney's activity on file-sharing sites by an investigator from Internet Crimes Against Children. Cranmer followed up on that tip, and was able to secure a search warrant. Upon that warrant's execution, the electronic devices were seized.
"When you deal with forensics on computers and cellphones, it takes a while," Cranmer said of the time lapsed between search warrant and charges.
Anyone with any information on Sweeney's whereabouts is asked to contact the East Alton Police Department at (618) 259-6212.
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