ANDERSON, Ind. -- An 18-year-old Anderson resident has been charged after four CyberTips uncovered hundreds of files of child pornography.
According to court documents filed earlier this month in Madison County, 18-year-old Patrick Sigler was charged with two counts of possession of child pornography, each a Level 5 felony.
This comes after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children sent the Westfield Police Department four CyberTips from Google in late May 2023 and early June 2023 regarding potential child pornography files.
Detectives said one of the tips linked to Sigler was found to have 133 files, including videos of infants and children being sexually abused. The documents said that further files were found after additional subpoenas and investigation.
In an interview with Sigler at his high school on May 17, Sigler reportedly told detectives that he first started looking at child pornography in middle school.
Sigler reportedly said he would find links that would take him to an encrypted chat application or online cloud storage platform where he would download child pornography files. Sigler told detectives that at one point, he uploaded child pornography files to his Google account, which was eventually shut down.
Sigler reportedly told detectives he most recently downloaded files in April or early May from two different social media sites. The documents said that Sigler also told detectives he had most recently viewed child pornography in the week between May 10-17.
"(Sigler) said that he would have urges to watch child pornography and afterwards, he would feel 'icky,'" the documents read. "(Sigler) said these urges would build up over time and he would need to watch child pornography to satisfy the urge."
After investigators searched Sigler's bedroom, they recovered multiple electronic devices, including a phone that included more than 80 child pornography files. Most of the images and videos included infants and toddlers performing sexual acts.
According to court documents, an initial hearing for Sigler occurred on Tuesday afternoon.