Illinois man found with Oakland Co. teen jailed on child porn charges

An Illinois man accused of meeting up with a 14-year-old Oakland County girl has been jailed on child pornography charges, authorities announced Wednesday.

Damien Alexander Newman, 27, was arraigned on possession of child sexually abusive material, two counts of using a computer to commit a crime and distributing sexually explicit, visual or verbal material to children. All are felony charges.

Pontiac 50th District Court Judge Ronda Gross ordered Newman held in the Oakland County Jail without bond, citing a flight risk, the Sheriff's Office said in a statement.

The Galva, Illinois, resident was arrested early Saturday at the Hawk Woods Park and Campground on Bald Mountain Road in Auburn Hills, according to the release.

That's where deputies had tracked a 14-year-old Pontiac girl reported to have run away from home hours earlier while her mother was out of town, investigators said.

Deputies spotted the youth at the campground in a white van with Newman.

They detained him and learned the man had a large fixed-blade knife. Newman told deputies he met the girl about a year ago on Snapchat and they were meeting for the first time, officials said.

Deputies confiscated cell phones from Newman and the girl.

Detectives from the Sheriff’s Office Computer Crimes Unit found child porn and other sexually explicit material on Newman’s cell phone, representatives said Wednesday.

“It is disgusting and tragic that there are individuals who seek to perpetrate or share sexual violation of children,” Sheriff Michael Bouchard said. “Through good detective work, this individual was caught and will be held to account.”

A probable cause conference is scheduled for May 24 followed by a preliminary examination a week later.

Newman faces up to seven years in prison if convicted on the computer charges.