A Gainesville man distributed child pornography and transmitted lewd material to a child, police said.
Jared Branham, a 34-year-old Gainesville resident, used Snapchat to interact with a 13-year-old girl in a sexually explicit way, according to a press release, and also obtained a nude picture from her. The Gainesville Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children division and GPD SWAT arrested him at his home on Southwest 31st Drive Tuesday.
When interviewed by a GPD detective, Branham acknowledged he sent “illegal content over the past year,” including two videos of child pornography when shown them by GPD, according to the release
Police booked him into the Alachua County jail on a bond of $125,000; he faces four counts of child pornography distribution and one count of sending lewd material.
The department investigated Branham after it received tips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, according to a GPD press release... He did it for excitement, he said.
GPD concluded its statement by warning parents to be vigilant about social media platforms like Kik, Tagged, TikTok, Facebook and Snapchat, which can be used to send child pornography.
Contact Omar at oateyah@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter @OAteyah.
Omar Ateyah is a third-year journalism student and the Alligator's Race and Equity reporter. He previously served as the Alligator's crime reporter and as a news assistant on the Metro Desk. He enjoys going on long, thoughtful walks.
