FORT WAYNE, Ind. (ADAMS) – A Fort Wayne man was arrested after Indianapolis police were alerted about child pornography images being uploaded to the online file storage service Dropbox.
On September 9, a detective with the Indianapolis Metro Police Department began investigating a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), according to court documents. Dropbox had notified NCMEC about eight images of child pornography uploaded by one of its subscribers.
The detective obtained a subpoena for information related to the subscriber’s IP address and search warrants for the Dropbox account and an associated email address belonging to Joshua Bear. He was arrested Monday off Traders Court in Fort Wayne.
ISP released the following:
On November 18, 2024, detectives with the Indiana State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) arrested a Fort Wayne man on alleged charges related to the possession of child pornography.
This arrest was the result of a three month investigation by the Indiana State Police ICAC Task Force after a tip was received from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). This tip was received from the Indianapolis Metro Police Department and was referred to the task force on September 9, 2024.
The tip ultimately led to a search warrant being served by the Indiana State Police at a residence located in the 10000 block of Traders Court, Fort Wayne, IN.
As a result of the investigation, Joshua Bear, 51, of Fort Wayne was arrested yesterday (Monday) morning on two counts of Possession of Child Pornography, Level 6 Felony, and one count of Possession of Child Pornography, Level 5 Felony. Bear was transported to the Allen County Jail and booked into custody.
The Indiana State Police was assisted by the Indianapolis Metro Police Department, Allen County Prosecutor’s Office, Fort Wayne Police Department, and the United States Department of Homeland Security Investigations Taskforce.
*Criminal charges listed are merely allegations at the time of arrest. Arrested persons named in this release are to be presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
The Indiana State Police oversees the ICAC Task Force, a multiagency task force that investigates allegations of using the internet to sexually exploit or entice children.
The ICAC Task Force encourages Hoosiers to report online exploitation, solicitation, and enticement-type crimes against children to the National center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). The NCMEC website can be accessed through the ICAC Task Force website.
ICAC Task Force website
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