Muskogee County man arrested for possession of child porn

(WARNER, Okla.) A cybertip to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) led to the arrest of a 40-year-old Muskogee County man. Jimmy Ray Mendenhall Jr. of Warner was arrested Monday by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation’s (OSBI) Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Unit. The investigation began June 18 when the OSBI was notified by NCMEC that suspected child sexual exploitation images were being stored in an online cloud account belonging to Mendenhall. Attempting to locate Mendenhall’s whereabouts was challenging due to a lack of stable employment information and residential history. However, through an exhaustive investigation that included local, state and federal partners and resources, he was located at a residence in Warner that belonged to his mother. Although he tried to flee, Oklahoma ICAC Taskforce members from the OSBI and Muskogee Police Department were able to locate and take him into custody with assistance from the U.S. Marshal Service, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Task Force, the Cherokee Nation Marshals and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. He was booked into the Muskogee County jail and is facing charges of Possession of Child Pornography, Distribution of Child Pornography and Violation of the Oklahoma Computer Crimes Act. Mendenhall’s previous criminal history includes two counts of Lewd Acts to a Child and one count of Failure to Register as a Sex Offender. His sex offender registration requirement expired as of March 2014. Any suspected child sexual exploitation should be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST or www.cybertipline.com or to the OSBI ICAC unit at 405-879-OSBI.