WEST JORDAN — The Attorney General’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) arrested 29-year-old Joel-Lehi Organista on the evening of June 2, 2021. Organista has been charged with eight counts of Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, a second-degree felony. Organista is a member of the Salt Lake City School Board and has been asked to resign as of June 3, 2021.
Read more on the charges in the Probable Cause Affidavit
Acting on a Cyber Tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, officers uncovered numerous pictures and videos of child pornography on a Dropbox account belonging to Organista. Serving a search warrant, officers also discovered several dozens more such images, including evidence that Organista was communicating directly with children identifying themselves as between the ages of 12-17. Evidence is still being collected from other electronic devices belonging to Organista.
Because Organista is in a position of trust in the education field, he is currently being held without bail in the Salt Lake County Jail, as of June 4, 2021.
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Links to news coverage, June 3, 2021
KSL/Deseret News: https://www.ksl.com/article/50179158/salt-lake-city-school-board-member-arrested-in-child-porn-investigation
KUTV: https://kutv.com/news/local/school-board-member-arrested-months-after-tip-asked-to-resign
KTVX: https://www.abc4.com/news/local-news/slc-school-board-leaders-respond-to-board-member-being-charged/
Telemundo:
Gephardt Daily: https://gephardtdaily.com/local/slc-school-district-board-member-facing-8-felony-sexual-exploitation-of-a-minor-charges/
