A Florida youth pastor stands accused of using church Wi-fi to access child pornography, following a nearly year-long investigation by police spurred on by an online tip.
Edward Wilds III of Palatka, Florida, was arrested on April 14 and charged with "possession of child pornography and using a two-way communication device to facilitate a felony" by the Putnam County Sheriff's Office, according to a report from the Miami Herald. He allegedly stayed behind after a Wednesday night service at the Palatka Baptist Temple sometime last spring and used the church's internet connection to download child sexual material, with tens of thousands of such images being found on devices associated with him over the course of the investigation.
"Detectives were alerted to possible distribution of child pornography through a cyber-tip from a social media site on May 22, 2022," the Putnam County Sheriff's Office stated in an official announcement. "Detectives discovered [that Wilds] had downloaded pornography images from Palatka Baptist Temple's Wi-Fi following a Wednesday evening service. In total 54,000 images were discovered on accounts and devices associated with Wilds. The majority of the images were pornographic... Detectives discovered messaging conversations where Wilds was asked by another user for images of children between the ages of 14-16 years old. He sent 42 images."
Wilds also worked as a teacher at the nearby Middleton-Burney Elementary School until investigators informed the Putnam County School District of his arrest, at which point he was "suspended and removed." Investigators handling the case first confronted him about the allegations in March and were later able to subpoena his electronic devices. Wilds also reportedly told authorities that his conduct had gotten him "banned by the company of one social media site several times."
"This is a clearcut case of child sexual exploitation and I'm deeply troubled by the commission of such heinous crime in our hometown," Sheriff H.D. DeLoach said. "The exploitation and abuse of children is a despicable act that has no place in our society. Wilds's behavior is disgusting, vile, and repugnant and I will not tolerate it in our county. Today's arrest of Wilds for possession of child pornography serves as a stark reminder that we all have a responsibility to be vigilant in protecting our children from all forms of abuse.
The sheriff continued: "Here's my message to all the sick, perverted scum who commit these crimes and whose moral compass is nonexistent: if you think you are going to victimize our children here and get away with it, test that theory at your earliest convenience and I'm personally coming for you."
It is not known at this time when Wilds appear in court. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, five for each of the charges he is currently facing.
Newsweek reached out to the Putnam County School District via email for comment.
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Thomas Kika is a Newsweek weekend reporter based in upstate New York. His focus is reporting on crime and national ... Read more
