A child pornography bust in San Francisco has led to the seizure of hundreds of videos and pictures and the arrest of a city resident, a couple in the United Kingdom and a Novato man.
According to a news release, Federal Bureau of Investigations agents and San Francisco police arrested Kori Nicole Ellis, 40, on April 17. Having combed through Ellis’ laptop and USB drive that contained over 600 files of child pornography, investigators say the youngest victim is one year old.
Investigators also found that Ellis contacted underage minors who lived in various states and forced them to send her sexually explicit photographs of themselves. She also communicated online with several individuals about child pornography and pedophilia, police said.
Ellis, who remains in custody and was indicted on Aug. 11, is charged with possession, receipt, distribution and production of child pornography, police added.
According to the release, investigators also stumbled across an online conversation between Ellis and a married couple in the United Kingdom in which she directed them to molest their infant child. Based on the couple’s replies, investigators gleaned that they obeyed Ellis’ orders, according to police.
Upon identifying the couple, law enforcement personnel in the UK raided the their residence in mid-May. Five underage minors were found in their home and moved to protective care. An investigation is ongoing, the statement said.
Investigators also identified a 29-year-old Novato man, Patrick Harvey, who met Ellis to view and trade child pornography. Harvey was arrested on Friday and placed in federal custody, police said.
