PORT TOWNSEND — Police have arrested a 32-year-old Port Townsend man for allegedly producing child sex images sent through a messaging app.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Matan Liyor Goodman appeared in U.S. District Court in Tacoma on Monday on charges of having uploaded images of child sex abuse through the messaging app, Kik.
In a news release, the DOJ said the investigation began with a report to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) that a Kik user had uploaded suspected images of child sexual abuse. A review of the computer records indicated the person uploading the images resided in western Washington. The information was forwarded to the Internet Crimes against Children (ICAC) Task Force at the Seattle Police Department.
“An agent with Homeland Security Investigations connected the computer information with Goodman at an address in Port Townsend,” DOJ said. “Further investigation revealed that Goodman is a registered sex offender due to convictions in California.”
Law enforcement obtained a warrant for Goodman’s home and electronic devices. Following the search, Goodman was taken into federal custody on probable cause last Thursday.
Due to his prior convictions, Goodman faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison if convicted of production of child pornography.
The case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations in partnership with the Seattle Police ICAC and with assistance from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in 2006.
For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit justice.gov/psc.
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Reporter Peter Segall can be reached at peter.segall@peninsuladailynews.com.
