Butte College officer pleaded not guilty to child pornography charges and was released on bail

BUTTE COUNTY, Calif. — Butte College police officer arrested in August Allegation of possession and distribution of child pornography He pleaded not guilty Thursday in Butte County Superior Court.

Allen Lamont Charles, 48, was arrested in April on charges of possession and distribution of child pornography after the Butte County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) received a cyber tip from the National Missing and Exploitation Center, Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey said. Children (NCMEC).

Charles was released from Butte County Jail the same day as his arrest after posting $150,000 bail, according to Ramsey.

BCSO began investigating the tip obtained from the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) data system and found that Charles not only possessed images and videos of child pornography, but also distributed some of them to two separate individuals. Ramsey said it was also revealed that the accounts used to send the images were accessed from multiple locations, including Charles’ home and the IP address assigned to the Butte College campus where he worked.

On August 28, Charles was arrested on his way from home to work. Additional electronic items were seized from Charles’ person, which were later forensically examined and found to contain additional images of child pornography, Ramsey said. During a search of Charles’ home during the arrest, BCSO detectives located an illegal assault rifle and silencer.

Charles is due back in court on December 4, 2024 for his preliminary hearing. According to Ramsey, Charles will remain free on bail.