Dec. 13—Monongalia County Magistrate Sandy Holepit on Friday set bail at $1 million for a Westover man charged with six counts of distributing and exhibiting material depicting minors engaged in sexual conduct.
Westover Police Chief Joe Adams said the Westover Police Department was notified after the Parkersburg Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation received information that Justin Ryan Weston, 41, was downloading pornography featuring children from the Internet.
Adams said the victims depicted in the material are not local and that WPD is not aware of any previous cases involving Weston.
According to the police report, the investigation was initiated on March 11, resulting in a search warrant for 127 Parkview Drive, in Westover.
Items were seized during the search and forensically examined.
Among the items seized was a device worn by Weston. On that device, investigators found files showing minors engaging in sexually explicit behavior, particularly behavior involving violence, slavery, and sexual acts.
The children in the images are probably between 1 and 10 years old.
The six charges each carry a prison sentence of five to 15 years, a $25,000 fine, or both.
