A 39-year-old Centralia man has been charged with 13 counts of child pornography following an investigation conducted by the Illinois Attorney General’s Office and Centralia Police.
Lucas Connaway of Nelms Street was arrested on Tuesday after the two agencies executed a search warrant on his home for electronic devices.
Based on their findings, Connaway was charged in Marion County Court on Wednesday with four counts of Class X child pornography for reproducing a screen recording of a video involving a sex act with a child under 13. The other nine counts are for allegedly having possession of electronic images of a child under 13 engaged in a sexual act. The alleged acts occurred between April of last year and February of this year.
Judge Mark Stedelin ordered Connaway held without bond on the charges until his next court appearance on May 20th for a preliminary hearing. A public defender was appointed to represent him.
Centralia Police Lt. Steve Whritenour says so far, three victims have been identified as the investigation continues.
The investigation began following a cyber tip received by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that was turned over to the Illinois Attorney General’s office for follow-through.
