A 65-year-old St. Petersburg man was arrested Wednesday after detectives say a tip from the national Internet Crimes Against Children program led them to a cache of illegal videos on his electronic devices. He was taken into custody without incident and transported to the Pinellas County Jail, where authorities say the recovered files were serious enough to trigger a long list of felony charges.
According to Tampa Free Press, the suspect is Raymond Bourque, who now faces 20 felony counts. Detectives say those include 10 counts of possession of child pornography and 10 counts of possession of sexual activities involving animals. Investigators report that a forensic review of several digital devices turned up the illegal material. Bourque remained behind bars as court proceedings get underway and investigators continue to trace both the origin and volume of the files.
How investigators say the probe began
Detectives say the investigation kicked off after a specific lead came through the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force program. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children runs the CyberTipline, which collects reports from service providers and from the public and sends them to law enforcement for follow-up. Those reports can lead to local search warrants and forensic analysis of seized devices, as outlined by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Local ICAC task forces then work with detectives to review the tips, match them to potential suspects and dig into any evidence found on electronic devices.
Charges and legal stakes
Bourque is charged with 20 felony counts tied to the recovered videos, according to investigators. Under Florida law, possession of child sexual abuse material can be prosecuted as a felony, and each individual image or video can be treated as its own offense. State law also bans sexual activities involving animals and criminalizes recording or possessing such material. The statutory language and potential penalties are detailed in Florida Statutes, 827.071 and Florida Statutes, 828.126.
Local pattern as ICAC tips increase
St. Petersburg detectives and other Pinellas County agencies have leaned on ICAC tips in a string of recent cases. In January, the St. Petersburg Police Department reported that an ICAC lead resulted in the arrest of a man on 18 counts of possession of child pornography, a reminder of how often the tipline serves as the first breadcrumb in these digital investigations, according to St. Petersburg Police. The pattern highlights how online reporting tools and forensic deep dives into phones and computers have become central weapons for teams working child exploitation cases.
Bourque faces 20 felony counts and remains in custody while the judicial process plays out, with prosecutors set to determine the final slate of charges as the investigation continues. Anyone with additional information is urged to contact local detectives or submit a report through the NCMEC CyberTipline, and Tampa Free Press reports that investigators are still working to map the full scope of the seized material.
