ATLANTA -- Four North Georgia men were among 53 arrested this week in a massive child pornography crackdown authorities describe as an all-out effort to stifle the illegal business.
Led by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, authorities executed 80 search warrants and seized almost 300 computers in the statewide bust called Operation Restore Hope that began Tuesday.
The operation capped a three-month effort to track the spread of online child pornography. It follows an operation last year in which 27 people were arrested and more than 100 computers seized, the GBI said.
The operation focused on computer users who share child pornography online for free, using peer-to-peer software, said John Whitaker, the GBI agent who led the operation.
"Even though we have other problems in Georgia, this is a major problem here compared with other states," Whitaker said. "And we're trying our best to move forward with this operation with as many resources as we have."
His office has so far pinpointed 50,000 IP addresses -- the Web equivalent of a street address or phone number -- that are trading child pornography. He said Georgia's tally is the fifth-highest in the nation.
Two men in the Gordon County community of Fairmount were among those arrested on multiple counts of sexual exploitation of children.
Sheriff Mitch Ralston said they are Michael Haygood, 44, of 597 Folsom Road, and Franklin Risley, 67, of 135 Windy Hill Drive.
In Whitfield County, Vincent McCarty, 43, of 3575 Lower Dug Gap Road, was charged with possession of child pornography. In Murray County, Albert Norton, 47, of 178 Highway 225 South, was charged with four counts of sexual exploitation of children.
Joy Lukachick covers crime in North Georgia for the Chattanooga Times Free Press. She started working at the paper in July 2009 as an intern. Raised near the Bayou, Joy’s hometown is along the outskirts of Baton Rouge, La. She has a bachelor’s degree in mass communication from Louisiana State University. While at LSU, Joy was a staff writer for the Daily Reveille. When Joy isn't chasing down stories, she is a full-time supporter of ...
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