CANTON — A Forsyth County deputy has been arrested and charged with two counts of distribution of child pornography.
According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Forsyth County Chief Deputy Grady Sanford, age 56, was arrested and charged with two counts of distribution of child pornography following a search warrant executed at his home in Canton.
An investigation into Sanford’s internet activity on Nov. 6 indicated child sexual abuse images had been uploaded to the Internet using a popular email platform. The IP address that was used to log into the email platform physically resolved to Sanford’s home address, GBI officials say.
Sanford was booked into the Cherokee County Jail.
After the warrant was executed and probable cause was found to make an arrest, Forsyth County Sheriff Ron Freeman terminated Sanford’s employment effective immediately.
“To say this is a shock is a gross understatement. We intentionally set our standards high at Forsyth County. Regardless of rank, every employee must meet those moral and legal standards,” Freeman said. “There is no room for this type of crime in our State, and certainly not in the law enforcement profession. Our trust and that of our community has been betrayed. I’ve made a commitment to be transparent, even when one of our own employees does wrong. No one is exempt and no one is above the law.”
Anyone with information about other cases of child exploitation is asked to contact the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit at 404-270-8870.
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