OREM, Utah, March 9, 2020 (Gephardt Daily) — An Orem man was arrested Thursday after he allegedly shared child pornography on social media sites.
A probable cause statement from Utah County said Jason McKay Beckstead, 35, is facing 20 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, a second-degree felony.
On Dec. 4, Instagram filed a report with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children regarding a user who allegedly uploaded an image of suspected child pornography to their account, the statement said. Instagram reported the incident occurred on Dec. 2.
On Dec. 26, Tumblr filed a report with the NCMEC, regarding a user who allegedly uploaded five images of suspected child pornography to their account. Tumblr reported the incident occurred on Dec. 25.
On Feb. 3, a judge of the Third District Court reviewed and approved a judicial order prepared by an agent with the Utah Attorney General’s Office. The judicial order was served to CenturyLink. The next day, CenturyLink reported the subscriber of the requested IP address as Beckstead, residing at a residence in Orem.
On Feb. 25, a detective with the Orem Police Department’s Special Victims Unit and a member of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received a cyber tip from the Utah Attorney General’s office regarding a suspect in the city of Orem, that was in possession and distributing child exploitation material, the statement said.
A search warrant was drafted and approved on March 4 in the case. A search warrant was conducted on the suspect’s residence and several items of interest were seized.
Beckstead was arrested and transported to Utah County Jail with his bail set at $200,000.
