A Southern California man, Alexander Wine-Duchateau, was arrested in Yucaipa on suspicions of child sexual abuse material possession and distribution after injuring himself while trying to destroy evidence, as reported by KTLA. The 26-year-old was taken into custody on Thursday in his mobile park home located in the 13000 block of 5th Street as Redlands Police Department detectives executed a search warrant. During the incident, Wine-Duchateau drilled through a hard drive and injured his fingers, he declined medical treatment for his injuries.
According to the Redlands Police Department's Facebook post, the arrest is part of a larger initiative, Online Guardian 2.0, which targets the sexual exploitation of children on the internet; this regional task force involves multiple law enforcement agencies across Southern California, including San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, and Santa Barbara counties.
During the search of Wine-Duchateau's residence, multiple electronic devices were seized, and investigators have located over 100 files of images of child sexual abuse. Police noted that before detectives conducted their search, several people were removed from the home, albeit further details about these individuals have not been provided. Following the seizure and discovery of the material, Wine-Duchateau was held at the West Valley Detention Center for the possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material and destruction of evidence.
The Redlands Police Department continues to encourage anyone with further information regarding this case or similar incidents to contact Redlands Police Detective Dale Peters at 909-798-7659.
