A 32-year-old Grahamsville man is behind bars after state troopers say a months-long child exploitation probe led them to his front door on Friday. Authorities allege Shawn W. Edwards promoted and shared sexually explicit material involving a minor and then compounded his problems by falsely reporting an incident to officials.
According to a New York State Police press release, the investigation started in October 2025 after a CyberTip from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and culminated with a search warrant at Edwards’ Grahamsville home on Friday. Troopers say he was arrested without incident, taken to the State Police Liberty barracks, arraigned in Town of Liberty Court and sent to the Sullivan County Jail with bail set at $10,000 cash, $20,000 bond and $40,000 partially secured bond. He is due back in Town of Neversink Court on Monday.
Local coverage identified the suspect as Shawn W. Edwards. Newport Dispatch reported that he faces four counts of promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child under 17, one count tied to using a computer system to disseminate indecent material to a minor, and a second degree charge of falsely reporting an incident.
How investigators say the probe unfolded
State Police say the Troop F Computer Crimes Unit led the case, with help from the Troop F Child Abuse Unit, the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the FBI Hudson Valley Safe Streets Task Force, New York State Police at Liberty and an electronic detection K-9 team. Investigators executed a search warrant at the Grahamsville residence and collected evidence as part of what they describe as an ongoing investigation.
What the charges mean
Promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child is defined under New York Penal Law § 263.10 as a class D felony, according to the New York State Senate. The statute covers conduct involving obscene performances that include sexual conduct by a child.
Disseminating indecent material to a minor in the second degree, which can include use of computer communication systems, is a class E felony under Penal Law § 235.21, as summarized by FindLaw. The law targets sending certain sexual content to someone under 17 when the sender believes the recipient is a minor.
Falsely reporting an incident involving a fire, explosion or hazardous substance to an official in the second degree is set out in Penal Law § 240.55 and is also treated as a class E felony under state law.
Edwards remained in Sullivan County custody after bail was set and is scheduled to appear in Town of Neversink Court on Monday, according to the New York State Police, who say the investigation is still active.
NCMEC’s CyberTipline serves as the national clearinghouse for reports of online child sexual exploitation and routes tips from tech companies and the public to law enforcement, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Troop F has asked anyone with information related to this case to contact its public information office.
