COOK COUNTY, IL – A 25-year-old Chicago man has been charged after a Cook County Sheriff’s Police investigation found he shared child sexual abuse material (CSAM) via a social media app, Sheriff Thomas J. Dart announced today.
Sheriff’s Police launched an investigation in December after receiving a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about a social media user uploading and sending potential CSAM using their account.
Sheriff’s Police investigators learned that the social media account belonged to Levi Pitchford and confirmed that CSAM was shared via that account.
On Feb. 3, Sheriff’s Police investigators met with Pitchford in the 14100 block of South Leavitt Street in Blue Island, where he was staying. After being issued his Miranda rights, Pitchford told investigators he had CSAM on his cell phone. Investigators took the device and obtained a search warrant for it.
A forensic analysis of the phone found approximately 20 files containing CSAM.
On Feb. 25, investigators took Pitchford into custody. Later that day, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office approved dissemination of CSAM and possession of CSAM charges against him.
He was ordered to Cook County Jail custody on Feb. 26 following his initial court appearance at the Bridgeview Courthouse.
The public is reminded that defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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