Point Pleasant man charged with manufacturing and distributing child sexual abuse material after foster home raid
POINT PLEASANT BOROUGH, NJ – A 42-year-old Point Pleasant Borough man has been charged with multiple child exploitation offenses after investigators uncovered evidence he manufactured and distributed child sexual abuse material, prosecutors announced Thursday.
John Olson was originally arrested on August 22 after detectives executed a search warrant at his residence following a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The referral, routed through the New Jersey State Police Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, indicated that images of child sexual abuse material had been uploaded using an internet application.
The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office High Tech Crime Unit identified an IP address linked to Olson’s home. During the search, several electronic devices were seized, and investigators learned that the residence was being used as a foster home. Detectives also discovered cameras inside the children’s bedrooms.
Olson was initially charged with distribution and possession of child sexual abuse material and was taken into custody at that time.
A forensic review of the seized devices later revealed nude images of children on Olson’s cell phone, which prosecutors said appeared to have been recorded using the bedroom cameras. On August 28, Olson was additionally charged with manufacturing, distribution, and possession of child sexual abuse material. He remains lodged in Ocean County Jail pending a detention hearing.
Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer credited the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office High Tech Crime Unit, the Ocean County Regional SWAT Team, the Point Pleasant Borough Police Department, the NJSP ICAC Task Force, and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children for their coordinated work on the case.
Authorities stressed that the charges are accusations and Olson is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
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Key Points
- John Olson, 42, of Point Pleasant Borough, was charged with manufacturing, distributing, and possessing child sexual abuse material.
- Investigators found cameras in foster children’s bedrooms and seized devices containing illicit images.
- Olson remains in Ocean County Jail pending a detention hearing.