Oak Harbor man charged with child porn crimes

PORT CLINTON — An Oak Harbor man was recently arrested for allegedly possessing nude images of a teenage girl. Kevin L. Edwards Jr., 22, 9000 block W. Duff-Washa Road, was arrested following an indictment by the Ottawa County grand jury in February for seven counts of illegal use of a minor or impaired person in nudity-oriented material or performance, each a fifth-degree felony. The alleged crimes occurred from Oct. 7, 2024, to Oct. 16, 2024, according to Edwards' indictment. Edwards allegedly possessed and viewed sexually explicit photos of a minor. Background On Oct. 8, an agent from the Ottawa County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes Unit spoke with a teenage girl who claimed that a man she was previously talking to was threatening to post explicit photos of her, according to a report from the Ottawa County prosecutor's office. The girl allegedly told investigators that Edwards' began seeing another girl that she knew personally who informed her that Edwards' was still in possession of her nude photos and that he was threatening to post them online to "ruin her life," the report states. Shortly after speaking with the girl, law enforcement obtained a search warrant and responded to the address where Edwards worked to speak with him. An agent pulled Edwards aside and explained that they needed to speak with him and that he had a search warrant for his cellphone, the report states. The agent, as outlined in the report: • Seized Edwards' cellphone • Explained that he was free to leave and that he did not have to speak with him if he didn't want to • Asked Edwards if he had any nude images of the teenage girl, in which he said "yes" but added that the girl sent them to him without him even asking Edwards allegedly told the detective that the girl was aware that he saved her photos as she was right next to him when he did so. Edwards further explained to the detective that the girl got mad at him when he found out that she allegedly was dating a 33-year-old man, the report states. When the agent asked Edwards if he threatened to send the girl's nude images around, Edwards said that he threatened to show her boyfriend because he "did not think the age difference was right." On Oct. 15, agents began looking through Edwards' phone and found at least seven nude images of the girl as well as a text message conversation between him and the girl's mother asking him to delete the photos as her daughter was under the age of 18, the report states. As of Tuesday afternoon, Edwards has since been released from jail on his own recognizance. Edwards has an upcoming court hearing scheduled at 1 p.m. on April 16.