JOPLIN, Mo. —
A Carl Junction man was dismissed as a regional manager for a not-for-profit group providing services to foster care youths in the Joplin area when he became the subject of a probe of child pornography available on the Internet.
Jasper County Circuit Court records show that Robert W. Downey, 58, was charged June 22 with the Class B felony crime of promoting child pornography after an investigation by the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force.
Task force agents, sheriff’s deputies and Carl Junction police served a search warrant June 16 at Downey’s home at 712 Copper Oaks Drive in Carl Junction. Agents seized a laptop computer that allegedly had video files containing child porn.
Downey was a regional manager for Alternative Opportunities Inc., a Springfield-based provider of social and behavioral health services in three states that has a contract in Missouri to provide an array of services for the Department of Social Services. He worked out of an office at 405 E. Fourth St. in Joplin.
Downey was out of town when the search warrant was served at his home, according to a probable-cause affidavit. Reggie McElhannon, director of public policy for Alternative Opportunities, said that when Downey returned from his vacation June 18 and learned of the investigation, he informed his employer and was fired.
McElhannon said Downey primarily supervised staff members providing employment services for adults with disabilities, and he also supervised staff members who work with youths transitioning out of the state’s foster care system.
“He was not a direct-care provider for any type of minors or youth,” McElhannon said.
Detective Ed Bailey of the Jasper County Sheriff’s Department, who is a member of the Cyber Crimes Task Force, was conducting an online investigation May 28 when he connected with another Internet user’s file-sharing folder, according to a probable-cause affidavit.
The affidavit states that the folder had 26 files to share, including one that appeared by title to contain child pornography and had been identified as such by law enforcement in previous investigations. The detective’s downloading of the file reportedly confirmed his suspicions, and five other files with common child pornography search terms in their titles were noted in the folder.
A subpoena identified the user of the Internet Protocol address as Downey, and a search warrant eventually was obtained, the affidavit states. When the warrant was served June 16, Bailey conducted a preliminary search of the laptop computer at Downey’s home and found that the video he had downloaded previously had been moved from the file-sharing folder to a folder dubbed “My Taxes,” the affidavit states.
Bailey reportedly found seven other suspected child-porn videos on the computer that had been moved out of the file-sharing folder. The affidavit states that the detective sought an interview of Downey on June 21, a day before the charge was filed and an arrest warrant was issued, but Downey invoked his right to counsel instead.
Plea entered
Robert Downey entered a plea of innocent on June 24 on a charge of promoting child pornography and is scheduled for another court hearing July 29. He is free on $5,000 bond.
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