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Yuba City man arrested in child pornography case
Martinez Police Department involved in investigation
A Yuba City man is behind bars in Sutter County facing possible felony child pornography distribution charges.
Tomas Castro-Guzman, also known as Alfredo Martinez, was booked Tuesday into the Sutter County Jail on suspicion of possession and distribution of child pornography. He is being held without bail on an immigration violation, according to booking records.
Detectives found video files on Castro-Guzman’s computer, according to Capt. Lewis McElfresh.
“These are actual videos and movies involving real children,” McElfresh said.
Castro-Guzman, 33, was arrested at his home in the 500 block of Fruitvale Avenue in Yuba City, according to a press release from the Sheriff’s Department.
With the Sutter County courthouse closed for the Thanksgiving holiday, Castro-Guzman is scheduled for arraignment Monday afternoon, the Sutter County District Attorney’s Office said.
Deputies served a search warrant at the home following a three-month joint investigation with the Martinez Police Department. McElfresh said Martinez police tipped off the sheriff’s department to Castro-Guzman’s alleged activities.
Investigators found the electronic files, which were available on a publicly accessible Internet site, police said. It was not clear how many illicit images were found.
The investigation was sparked by the Electronic Crimes Unit of the Martinez Police Department. Sgt. Dave Mathers was monitoring online activity when he came across Castro-Guzman online.
“He offered to share some files with me, and I accepted that invitation,” Mathers said.
Martinez police forwarded the case to the Sutter County Sheriff’s Department where detectives investigated the online file-sharing and confirmed Castro-Guzman was distributing videos of real children, authorities said.
“The investigation is continuing to determine if any more people were involved,” McElfresh said.
McElfresh said Castro-Guzman is only suspected of possessing and distributing the images and not manufacturing them.
CONTACT Rob Parsons at rparsons@appealdemocrat.com or 749-4785. Find him on Facebook at /ADcrimebeat or on Twitter at @ADcrimebeat.
