A federal complaint filed against a Metairie man last week accuses him of paying for child pornography through online cryptocurrency.
Carson Riess was charged with receipt and distribution of child pornography and possession of child pornography in the complaint filed May 21.
Federal Homeland Security Investigations agents have investigated Riess since January 2023. That's when investigators say Riess used a Cox Communications IP address to download 21 files of software used to share child pornography.
Cox responded to authorities, linking the IP address to Riess at his home in the 700 block of Pasadena Avenue in Metairie. In December 2023, Riess was also traced to his bitcoin address, which investigators say sent cryptocurrency to an online user known for offering child sexual abuse materials in exchange for a membership fee.
Homeland Security investigators linked Riess to the Bitcoin Depot ATM at a gas station on Airline Drive. They also noted in their complaint that PayPal had previously reported Riess for transferring cryptocurrency to a child pornography seller.
On May 16, authorities issued two federal search warrants and on May 20 at 7:30 a.m. they were executed at Riess' home.
Riess gave agents an interview and admitted that one of his computers contained software commonly used by criminals, according to agents. Riess also admitted to downloading files containing child pornography, but said he typically deleted that content because "that's not what he was looking for," according to court records.
Riess eventually admitted to sending cryptocurrency as well, but said he was only looking for "young" porn. During the search, investigators found a desktop computer containing child pornography of a prepubescent girl forced to perform a sexual act on a man.
Riess awaits a detention hearing on June 5 in federal court.
