Manchester man charged in child sex abuse image distribution bust across state lines
Manchester Township, NJ – A quiet neighborhood was tied to a disturbing investigation this week after authorities charged a 38-year-old Manchester Township man with multiple counts of distributing and possessing child sexual abuse material—after his digital footprint allegedly led investigators across state lines to uncover graphic evidence on a seized cellphone.
Phillip Ommundsen was officially charged on Tuesday with three counts of distribution and one count of possession of child sexual abuse material, following a cyber-tip received by the New Jersey State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The alert came from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, pointing to an individual sharing explicit material involving minors through internet platforms.
Investigators with the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office High Tech Crime Squad traced the activity to an IP address linked to a residence in Manchester Township. The suspect was using the Kik Messenger platform to send and receive explicit content, according to the findings. A deeper probe into the Kik accounts led detectives to identify and recover multiple images and videos of child sexual abuse material sent by Ommundsen.
The investigation took a turn when officials learned that Ommundsen was already in custody on unrelated charges in Reynoldsville, Pennsylvania. Detectives discovered that his cellphone had been seized by local law enforcement there. A court-authorized warrant allowed New Jersey investigators to retrieve and forensically examine the device, revealing further incriminating evidence, including two Kik accounts and more illicit material.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations will serve the newly filed charges to Ommundsen while he remains incarcerated at the Jefferson County Jail in Pennsylvania. His extradition status and court date in New Jersey have not yet been announced.
Officials credited the collaboration among local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies for building a case that crossed jurisdictions and relied heavily on digital forensic analysis.
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Key Points
- Phillip Ommundsen of Manchester Township was charged with distributing and possessing child sexual abuse material.
- Investigators linked explicit content shared via Kik Messenger to his home IP address and cellphone.
- Ommundsen was already jailed in Pennsylvania on unrelated charges when additional evidence was found on his phone.