Federal prosecutors have filed a new charge against a Petaluma man and former Stockton police officer, accusing him of possessing child sexual abuse material as an offshoot of a sprawling investigation that started with a summertime fire in Sonoma County. The defendant, 43-year-old Gregory Klemme, had already been arrested in connection with an arson probe and separate state explosives and methamphetamine allegations. The latest federal complaint says investigators uncovered illicit images and videos on a phone seized during that earlier search.
In a criminal complaint filed in federal court, agents reported finding six explicit videos and more than 2,200 images of child sexual abuse material on the device, including files that appear to depict prepubescent children, according to The Mercury News. Prosecutors have now added a federal possession count based on what was recovered from the phone, with the case pending in U.S. District Court.
Explosives Case Sparked Summer Investigation
The wider investigation kicked off in late July, when Cal Fire investigators responded to an explosion and vegetation fire on Pine Flat Road east of Geyserville, on Bureau of Land Management property, and detained Klemme at the scene. Authorities said improvised explosive devices were found near the blaze, and a subsequent search warrant at his Petaluma home in the 1200 block of Kresky Way turned up precursor chemicals and completed devices, according to The Press Democrat.
During that multi-agency search, investigators reported recovering several pounds of explosive-making materials and three finished devices inside the residence, along with methamphetamine and related paraphernalia. Court paperwork and statements from investigators also allege that searches of Klemme's vehicle produced two pounds of mixed explosive powders and roughly 42 pounds of precursor chemicals. After the July arrests, Klemme was booked into Sonoma County Jail and authorities applied a $1 million bail enhancement, local officials said, according to KPIX/CBS Bay Area.
Federal Charge And Possible Prison Time
Prosecutors say the material on the seized phone is what prompted the separate federal count for possession of child sexual abuse material. Federal law allows for penalties of up to 20 years in prison when the images involve prepubescent children, according to the U.S. Code. The criminal complaint was filed on Tuesday, according to Patch and court records.
Background
Klemme's history has added an extra layer of public scrutiny to the case. Local reporting and public records indicate he previously worked as a Brinks security guard and was the victim of an armed robbery in 2010, and that he later served as a Stockton police officer around 2012–2013, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
The federal complaint is now on file, and the matter will move forward in the U.S. District Court system. Specific dates for an arraignment or other hearings were not included in the filing available at press time. Prosecutors and local law enforcement have not issued additional public statements aside from what appears in the court documents, according to Patch.
Multiple agencies, including Cal Fire, the Bureau of Land Management, and the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office, remain active in the explosives and arson investigation while federal authorities pursue the child-porn count. Investigators have asked anyone with information about the July fire to contact local law enforcement, noting that any tips could matter as both the state and federal cases move ahead.
