An Anchorage man has been arrested and charged with possessing and distributing child pornography.
Anchorage police arrested Jacob Kellogg Ballard, 26, Feb. 5 outside his home on Mockingbird Drive following a four-month long investigation. Investigators found more than 3,000 images and videos on devices belonging to Ballard, all of which depicted child sexual exploitation.
According to court documents, Ballard admitted during his police interview he had been viewing child pornography since he was in middle school, and has been trying to stop. Using file share software, Ballard said he had seen images and videos of sexually exploited children even as young as infants.
Search warrants were granted to the Anchorage Police Department Cyber Crime Unit on Feb. 4, allowing police to seize Ballard’s Apple Macbook Pro and several other electronic devices, which Ballard told police were also used to view child pornography.
Ballard faces seven counts of child pornography distribution and four counts of child pornography possession. Bail has been set at $50,000 plus $15,000 cash and a third-party custodian.