RAPID CITY, S.D. – A man arrested on child pornography charges will be jailed pre-trial after he was reported by a national child welfare group.
According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in South Dakota, Javier Moreno, a former leader with the Salvation Army of the Black Hills, will be detained without bond.
Moreno, a 40-year-old from Rapid City, has pleaded not guilty to one count of receiving child porn and one count of possessing it from Oct. 24, 2020, through Feb. 22, 2021.
He was originally charged in state court with possessing, creating or distributing child pornography but that case was dismissed May 25 due to the federal indictment, court records show.
Moreno was indicted after law enforcement received a cybertip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, according to the news release.
If convicted, Moreno will be sentenced to at least five years in prison and up to 20 years. He would also have to forfeit 46 electronic devices seized by law enforcement during a May 13 search of the Salvation Army’s Black Hills Camp.
