BUTTS COUNTY, Ga. — Four people were arrested in Butts County in connection to a child sex abuse case, some of which went so far as to help one woman avoid arrest, according to a release from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
State and local investigators began looking into the group’s activities after receiving an online tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Law enforcement was able to get several warrants in Butts County. On May 23, several electronic devices were seized, which contained child pornography, the release said.
The devices implicated a 29-year-old woman in the case, who was believed to be producing and distributing child pornography. Warrants were obtained for her arrest, but she wasn’t taken into custody immediately.
The 29-year-old, along with two others, left the state to “avoid arrest and conceal evidence of [the] crime,” the release said.
The group was later arrested May 26 in Horry County, South Carolina. The 29-year-old and another woman, Breonna Jones, were arrested on child sex abuse charges.
The 29-year-old was charged with four counts of sexual exploitation of children. Three charges were given for distribution of child pornography and one other was handed down for production of child pornography.
Jones, 30, was charged with child molestation and hindering apprehension of a criminal. Because Jones is charged with child molestation, 11Alive is naming her, per our station's policy on mugshots and naming suspects.
The third suspect, a 31-year-old man, was charged with hindering apprehension of a criminal and obstruction.
In addition to arresting the three suspects in South Carolina, investigators announced a fourth arrest in the case. A 52-year-old woman was charged with party to the crime of child exploitation of children (production of child pornography) as well as false statements and writings.
Currently, the 29-year-old and Jones are being held in South Carolina, waiting to be extradited back to Georgia.
If you have any information about this cases, or other cases of child exploitation, is asked to contact the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Child Exploitation Unit at 404-270-8870.
Anonymous tips can also be submitted by calling 800-597-8477, or online at here. Residents can also download the See Something, Send Something mobile app to report cases, the release added.
The GBI, Butts County Sheriff's Office, FBI and United States Marshal Service assisted in the case.
