August 12, 2005

            LANSING –- Attorney General Mike Cox announced today the arrest of a Kalamazoo man for using the Internet to distribute and promote child sexually abusive material. The case was investigated through the Michigan Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force.

            “By joining forces with police agencies across Michigan, my office is making sure there is nowhere for child sexual predators to hide in our state,” said Cox. “Criminals who think they can use the anonymity of the Internet to harm our children will be tracked down through the latest technology and law enforcement cooperation.”

            South Haven Police Department officers arrested Kalamazoo resident Shawn Michael Vescoso, 32, in South Haven Saturday during the city’s 42^nd Annual National Blueberry Festival on a warrant previously issued by the Attorney General’s office. Transported to the Van Buren County Sheriff’s Department, Vescoso will be arraigned in Kalamazoo’s 8^th District Court Tuesday on six counts of Child Sexually Abusive Activity – Distributing or Promoting, a seven-year felony. He is also charged with seven counts of Child Sexually Abusive Material – Possession, a four-year felony, and two counts of Using a Computer to Commit a Crime, a seven-year felony.

            A criminal charge is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

            Since its restructuring, Cox’s Child and Public Protection Unit has arrested 42 Internet sexual predators. Attorney General Cox encourages parents to visit www.michigan.gov/ag for tips on safe Internet usage for children. Citizens can also report suspected Internet child predators via the Report Internet Abuses Against Children link, or by calling the Child and Public Protection Unit at (313) 456-0180.

            ICAC is a joint effort by the Department of Attorney General and the Michigan State Police. Other participating agencies include: the Michigan State University Office of Public Safety, the Livonia Police Department, the Sumpter Police Department, the U.S. Customs Service, and the U.S. Postal Service. The task force is funded, in part, by a grant from the United States Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

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