A 54-year-old DeKalb County man was arrested Thursday and charged with 10 counts of sexual exploitation of children, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
The GBI began an investigation into the online activity of Samuel “Tripp” Pickens Cook III after receiving a cybertip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children regarding the alleged possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material.
GBI agents executed a search warrant at Cook’s residence where numerous electronic devices were seized and examined by GBI digital forensic investigators.
According to the GBI, evidence was discovered from the search warrant which resulted in the arrest of Cook who was charged with eight counts of possession of child pornography and two counts of distribution of child pornography.
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Cook was transported to the DeKalb County Jail.
This investigation is part of the ongoing effort by the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, housed within the GBI’s Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit, to identify those involved in the trade of child sexual abuse material. The program, created by the U.S. Department of Justice, was developed in response to the increasing number of children and teenagers using the Internet, the proliferation of child sexual abuse material, and the heightened online activity by predators searching for unsupervised contact with underage victims.
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. Anonymous tips can also be submitted by calling 1-800-597-TIPS(8477), online at https://gbi.georgia.gov/submit-tips-online, or by downloading the See Something, Send Something mobile app.
⚠️ Reminder: Crime articles contain only charges and information from police reports and law enforcement statements. Suspects and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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