Wisconsin High School Senior Facing Child Pornography Charges After Uploading Sexually Explicit Videos To Dropbox

A 17-year-old senior at Denmark High School, Brandon Zittlow, of Denmark, Wisconsin, is facing 10 counts of possession and distribution of child pornography, according to WBAY.

On November 10, 2016, Dropbox, which is an online storage site, contacted the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children after noticing several “suspicious videos uploaded” to the site.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children immediately alerted the Brown County Sheriff’s Office.

It was reported that an account at Dropbox, which was under Zittlow’s name, uploaded several videos of child pornography.

Some of the children seen in the video were under the age of 12, according to police.

Investigators visited Zittlow at Denmark High School and pulled him out of class to question him about the child pornography videos that were found on the online storage site.

A 17-year-old Denmark High School student has been charged with 10 counts of possessing child pornography. https://t.co/kzSlpAlxDt

— Ben Krumholz WLUK (@BenKrumholzWLUK) January 6, 2017

The teen reportedly admitted to “looking at images of girls as young as 10 years old and trading photos of naked girls on social media apps,” but he added that he “didn’t think it was illegal for me to have possession of it since I thought when you were 18 it was illegal.”

Zittlow went on to say that he last chatted with underage girls, who hadn’t hit puberty yet, in November 2016. But he says “he no longer views child pornography because he has a girlfriend and that he feels guilty.”

A criminal complaint indicated that Zittlow obtained the “photos and videos because he shared and trades with others that he met on ‘Omegle’ and who he ultimately corresponds with on Kik messenger.”

Lt. Jim Valley with the Brown County Sheriff’s Office said, “These apps should be monitored. If there’s a group made, parents should be in the group to monitor what the kids are saying. You should have open access to that mobile device at all times to see things can be deleted very easily.”

According to the Denmark Schools District Administrator Tony Klaubauf, the child pornography charges does not involve the school or any other student. In a statement, he wrote, “I was informed one of our students was taken into custody yesterday which had to do with the misuse of technology.

“While we do not know of any specific charge, we were informed none of the allegations involve any activity while the student was at school or involve any other students at Denmark. The School District of Denmark will monitor this situation to assure the safety of our students.”

Zittlow seemed shaken and emotional when he made his first appearance before a judge on the afternoon of Thursday, January 5, in an adult courtroom, where a state prosecutor asked the court to hold the high school senior, who turns 18 in a week, on a $15,000 cash bond.

The court commissioner believed the amount was too high and set bail at $5,000.

After the court hearing, reporters spoke with Zittlow’s parents, who stated that they were stunned by the child pornography allegations and, according to reporters, were “visibly upset.”

In a press release, Tony Klaubauf, who is the Denmark School District Administrator, stated that “at this juncture of the District’s ongoing investigation, we are pleased to report that there is no evidence suggesting that any misconduct related to the investigation occurred on school property, during school hours, or that any other students from the District were involved.

“The District continues to investigate and will provide any updates, and take further action if necessary, to ensure the safety and security of all students in the District.”

Investigators are warning parents that technology is constantly changing and they should be involved in their child’s online activity. If you are not familiar with the person your child is communicating with, “delete them and have a conversation with your child.”

Meanwhile, Zittlow is not allowed access to electronic devices and the internet.

[Featured Image By Alex Raths/iStock]