Worthington youth bible teacher arrested while actively torrenting child porn, police say
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A volunteer teacher and youth bible study teacher in Worthington has been arrested for crimes related to child pornography.
According to federal court documents, 49-year-old Andrew Brown was arrested on April 30 after a six-month-long investigation into his alleged distribution, transportation, receipt, and possession of child pornography.
Investigators wrote in an affidavit that in October 2023, an officer was snooping on peer-to-peer filesharing networks and found an IP address was spreading or downloading child pornography. The download was completed with torrenting software, which allows users to share files directly with other peer-to-peer users. Between approximately Oct. 26 and Nov. 1, 2023, the Franklin County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force initiated an investigation into the same IP address. During that time, the group downloaded files from a torrent offered by the IP, finding that it was hosting over 1,000 images of child sexual abuse.
The user’s IP address was traced back to a computer in an apartment just south of Worthington. Investigators observed that the same computer continued to download child pornography through April 7, 2024.
On April 29, authorities served a search warrant to the north Columbus address. They entered the apartment and discovered Brown's computer was still actively downloading and exchanging pornographic content.
Brown, who investigators said admitted to using torrenting software to download child pornography, was arrested and taken to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office. There, Brown told deputies he described himself as a “collector” and that he had “a lot” of content on as many as 21 devices in the residence.
Brown told authorities that he is from Jamaica, where he also accessed child pornography, and was living in the United States on an expired visa.
Law enforcement seized 21 devices, including one that contained hundreds of images and videos depicting adult men sexually assaulting young girls.
On Friday, a preliminary hearing against Brown was transferred to Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, where a future court date has yet to be set. He was originally charged with two counts of pandering sexually oriented material involving a minor in municipal court on May 1 and issued a $500,000 bond.