Linn County Sheriff Bruce Riley reports on June 9, at approximately 7:15 a.m., his detectives served a search warrant at a residence on Ede Road, near Lebanon. As a result of the investigation detectives arrested Ronald Eugene Dial Jr, 48, for Encouraging Child Sexual Abuse in the First Degree.
The investigation leading to the search warrant and arrest began when the Linn County Sheriff’s Office received a CyberTip report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) concerning child pornography being emailed from an IP address in Linn County. Google had made the CyberTip report to NCMEC after one of Google’s automated systems had detected child pornography being emailed using a Google Gmail account.
Dial, a registered sex offender, was arrested after thousands of digital pictures and movies depicting children engaged in sexually explicit conduct were located on digital devices possessed by him. Numerous electronic items were seized during the search warrant, and digital forensic analysis of those items is ongoing. During an interview with detectives, Dial admitted to using his Gmail account to send and receive child pornography.
Dial was lodged at the Linn County Jail and charged with Encouraging Child Sexual Abuse in the First Degree.
The Linn County Sheriff’s Office was assisted in this investigation by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, The Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office (WA), The Albany Police Department, and the Benton County Sheriff’s Office.
The investigation is continuing, and anyone with information related to this investigation is encouraged to call Detective Trenary at 541-917-6665.