Christian Peterson
reporter@riverbendnews.org
On Thursday, Dec. 8 Collin Michael-Allen Adams Ruth of Mayo, was arrested on 32 counts of child pornography and on unlawful use of a two-way communication device.
Roughly two weeks before Monday, Sept. 19, Ruth purchased a tablet. During, the week of Sept. 19 he let an unnamed female borrow the tablet. His intention was to let her communicate with a friend. However, while the tablet was in her possession, she opened the picture gallery and observed multiple images that appeared to be child pornography. The woman upon seeing the images, contacted the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) and reported her discovery. Ruth was unaware that law enforcement were involved, as he was at work. On Monday, Sept. 19, Deputy Joan Negrette responded to the report and took possession of the tablet placing it into LCSO evidence.
Then, on Tuesday, Sept. 20, Special Agent Victoria St. John with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) was contacted by LCSO about the reported images discovered. LCSO requested that St. John assist in the case. Prior to St. John’s arrival, Lieutenant Geoff Condy went to Ruth’s residence informing him that LCSO had possession of his tablet. At this time, post-Miranda, Condy informed Ruth that questionable images had been found on the tablet. However, Condy had not seen the images as he needed consent from Ruth. Ruth then consented to a tablet search and signed a consent to search form. Ruth claimed that the only pictures on the tablet would be of his girlfriend.
Later the same day Condy provided the tablet to St. John, sealed in an evidence bag. St. John took the tablet to the FDLE Live Oak Field Office where she began the extraction. The analyzation discovered 32 videos containing child pornography. The videos showed girls between the ages of 5 and 12 performing sexual acts upon themselves, some videos reaching 11 minutes in length. The FDLE arrest affidavit states, “there were also numerous child erotica videos and images discovered.” Ruth was then arrested and charged with 32 counts of child pornography and one count of unlawful use of two-way communication device.