Mahaska County Man Arrested for Sexual Exploitation of Minor

File photo. (Credit: Getty Images)

MAHASKA COUNTY, Iowa – A southern Iowa man is being held in the Mahaska County Jail after a tip from the U.S. Department of Justice's Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force led to the discovery of thousands of images of child pornography.

The Mahaska County Sheriff's Office said it received the tip from an ICAC investigator last week and a search warrant was executed at the home of Paul Westphal, 60, in Barnes City on Friday, June 28. Officers seized several electronic devices during the search of Westphal's apartment in the 300 block of Pine Street.

Westphal was charged with sexual exploitation of a minor, a class D felony. He was arrested Saturday.

Westphal denied possessing child pornography, according to the criminal complaint, and told investigators that his Wi-Fi was password protected and that his laptop was purchased new and that no one else had ever used it. The criminal complaint also says that an initial examination of one of the USB drives seized from Westphal’s home revealed more than 2,000 images and 50 videos of child pornography.

Westphal is being held on $500,000 cash-only bail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 10.