Hundreds of additional images and videos of child sexual abuse material were found on the phone of a 46-year-old Owensboro man recently arrested for possession of child porn, according to the Owensboro Police Department.
According to an OPD release, the investigation began after an Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force detective with the OPD Criminal Investigations Division received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding child sexual abuse material.
OPD announced on January 16 that Joey Rust had been arrested and charged with four counts of possession of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor under 12 years old.
According to the arrest citation, Rust uploaded a video of child sexual abuse material to his Google Drive account. The citation report says the video was reviewed and confirmed a juvenile female was the victim. The report shows the investigation resulted in the discovery of an additional three videos of child sexual abuse material.
Rust was taken into custody and detectives executed a search warrant in the 600 block of Pennbrooke Avenue on January 16, according to reports. Rust was subsequently arrested and lodged at the Daviess County Detention Center.
Since then, a forensic analysis of a seized cell phone belonging to Joey Rust resulted in the discovery of the additional material, according to an update from OPD. ICAC detectives have added new counts but are limited on the number of counts a person can be charged with due to legal limits, according to the release.
The additional charges against Rust are 16 counts of possession of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor under 12 years old, and 12 counts of possession of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor over 12 years old.
Court records show a $25,000 cash bond was set for Rust on January 17. He is scheduled to be arraigned on January 22.
