Officials: Tip That Originated In Brussels Led To Arrest Of Torrance Teacher On Child-Porn Charges
LONG BEACH (CBSLA.com) — Authorities said Friday that a tip that originated in Brussels led to the arrest of a 36-year-old Torrance middle-school teacher on charges of possession of child pornography.
Eric James Mitchell, a music teacher at Calle Mayor Middle School, was arrested at his Long Beach home by special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, ICE spokeswoman Virginia Kice said.
Agents reportedly served a search warrant at Mitchell's home and found "sexually explicit images of minors on digital devices in the home," she said.
Officers from the Los Angeles Police Department assigned to the Long Beach Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and officers from the Torrance Police Department aided with the arrest, Kice said.
The Torrance Unified School District was notified about the arrest and investigation, and Mitchell was placed on administrative leave, she said.
"We don't have any indication at this time that this individual victimized any of his students, but that's certainly a concern whenever we're investigating a child-pornography suspect who has close and ongoing contact with children," said Joseph Macias, special agent in Los Angeles.
"I'd caution we're still in the very initial stages of reviewing the evidence in this case, and we encourage the public to come forward if they have further information," Macias said.
Mitchell was hired in September 2014 and prior to that had worked as a substitute teacher in Long Beach, according to Tammy Khan, a spokeswoman for the school district.
Dave Mosely, the principal at Calle Mayor, issued a letter to parents notifying them of the arrest and that Mitchell was on administrative leave. He said he was working with district administration to make sure there was no interruption to music classes at the school.
Anyone with information regarding the ongoing investigation was urged to contact ICE's toll-free Tip Line at (866) DHS-2-ICE or by completing the agency's online tip form.
Kice did not have further information as to how Brussels was connected to the investigation.
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