Elberton, GA (November 17, 2022) – Paul Brooks, age 54, of Elbert County, GA, was arrested and charged with obscene internet contact with a child by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes (CEACC) Unit. The GBI CEACC Unit initiated an investigation after receiving a request for assistance from the Elbert County Sheriff’s Office. Information was received from the Carbondale Police Department in Kansas, that Brooks was allegedly messaging a minor in an obscene and sexual manner. The investigation by the Carbondale Police Department and the GBI led to Brooks’ subsequent arrest on November 15, 2022. This investigation is still ongoing and further charges may be pending. Brooks was taken to the Elbert County Jail upon his arrest.

This investigation is part of the ongoing effort by the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, housed within the GBI’s Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit, to identify those involved in the trade of child sexual abuse material. The ICAC Program, created by the U.S. Department of Justice, was developed in response to the increasing number of children and teenagers using the Internet, the proliferation of child sexual abuse material, and the heightened online activity by predators searching for unsupervised contact with underage victims.

Anyone with information about other cases of child exploitation is asked to contact the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit at 404-270-8870 or report via the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children CyberTipline at CyberTipline.org. Anonymous tips can also be submitted by calling 1-800-597-TIPS(8477), online at https://gbi.georgia.gov/submit-tips-online, or by downloading the See Something, Send Something mobile app.