A Miami man is behind bars facing multiple charges of child pornography after a lengthy investigation. The man, identified as 39-year-old Junior Del Villar Hernandez, was arrested Wednesday on 15 counts of possession of sexual performance by a child, according to authorities.
The Miami Police Department began to closely scrutinize Hernandez back in September 2022, following the upload of 15 videos containing child pornography to a Gmail account, reported CBS Miami. Investigators had to persistently pursue, despite hitting numerous misleading leads, before they were able to definitively connect Hernandez to the crime.
Detectives executing a search warrant discovered over 8,000 images of child pornography on Hernandez's cellphone. "The initial 15 images that we sent out in the press release was just a small cache. Investigative methods just revealed that there was over 8,000 images on his cell phone alone," Miami Police Chief Manuel Morales said in a statement obtained by NBC Miami.
The videos discovered were described as "extremely disturbing," with some depicting sexual acts on minors as young as two. The investigation, carried out by the Special Victims Unit's Internet Crimes Against Children detectives, also unearthed that Hernandez had been actively messaging underage girls through social media. Morales emphasized the gravity of the situation, stating, "It doesn't just stop at sharing all the images. We know that it leads to deeper, darker and more criminal things," as per NBC Miami.
Hernandez was a barber renting space at a shop in Edgewater, and he lived in a Miami apartment where neighbors expressed little surprise regarding the allegations. "It was crazy because I was talking about him earlier because I have coworker that lives there as well, he says he's really creepy," a woman told NBC Miami.
The Miami Police Department is continuing to investigate the possibility of other victims and has urged anyone with further information or those who may have been targeted by Hernandez to come forward. They can contact the Miami Police Department’s Special Victims Unit at (305) 603-6300 or Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305) 471-TIPS (4877).
