Lawrence man charged with child sex abuse arrested

By TONY FYFFE
BSN Editor

LOUISA – A Lawrence County man indicted in July on child sexual abuse charges was apprehended last week in Ohio. Tyler J. McKinney, 27, was located and arrested Thursday in Ironton, Ohio, by the U.S. Marshal Fugitive Task Force and lodged in the Big Sandy Regional Detention, according to a press release by Kentucky State Police. McKinney was indicted by a Lawrence County Grand Jury in July on two counts of promoting a minor under the age of 16 in a sexual performance, one count of second-degree rape, one count of second-degree sodomy, one count of third-degree rape, one count of third-degree sodomy, one count of first-degree sexual abuse, one count of prohibited use of an electronic communication system to procure a minor, one count of possessing or viewing matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor and one count of distribution of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor. The indictment followed an undercover Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) investigation by the KSP Electronic Crime Branch after discovering McKinney communicating with a juvenile female online, the press release said. McKinney was interviewed May 26 in connection with the investigation and a search warrant was executed for his cellular phone in Cattletsburg. Equipment allegedly used to facilitate the crime was seized and taken to KSP’s forensic laboratory for examination, the release said. The ICAC Task Force is comprised of more than 26 local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies and assists state and local law enforcement agencies in developing a response to cyber enticement and child sexual abuse material investigations. The support encompasses forensic and investigative components, training and technical assistance, victim services, prevention and community education. The ICAC program 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 of predators searching for unsupervised contact with underage victims.