Police arrest 16-year-old in Dropbox case
Authorities say the teen was responsible for Dropbox distribution of nude photos of Burrillville High School students
BURRILLVILLE – A 16year-old male was arraigned in Family Court yesterday on child pornography charges stemming from a probe into an online Dropbox network containing scores of sexually explicit photos of juvenile and adult females from Burrillville High School.
The youth, facing felony charges of possession and dis- tribution of child pornography, confessed to his role in sharing the images with his friends on the digital filesharing system, according to Police Chief Stephen Lynch.
Lynch said the alleged offender was a very “computer-savvy” individual who was solely responsible for reactivating an idle Dropbox account which had originally been started by someone else.
“We’re comfortable in saying we have got to the source of this particular Dropbox, which is simply a recreation of a previous Dropbox from some other time,” said Lynch. “This defendant is very computer savvy and he was able to resurrect a Dropbox that was already in existence.”
The charges stem from an ongoing investigation by members of the Burrillville Police Department and the Rhode Island State Police Computer Crimes Unit, involving the execution of search warrants for computer equipment and forensic analysis of the devices. Lynch said investigators discovered more than 100 videos and photos of 43 individuals within the Dropbox network, many of which “rose to the level of child pornography.” Some involved girls believed to be as young as 13 at the time the images were taken.
The investigation began in May, when Burrillville High School Vice Principal David Alba learned of the Dropbox and told School Resource Officer David Beauchemin what was in it. Police obtained a link to the Dropbox, which allowed them to explore the site.
Lynch said most of the sexually explicit content was copied from the pre-existing Dropbox when the youth reactivated it – but the defendant was acquainted with some of the females depicted in the images.
“Did he know them? Yes. He knew some of the girls,” said the chief. “Did they know he was the originator? No.”
Some of the females who found out that sexually explicit images of themselves were being circulated in the Dropbox network were quite upset about it, according to Lynch.
Initially, said Lynch, many
of these images were provided by the females to their boyfriends voluntarily, but they neither gave permission nor intended for the intimate material to be uploaded to a file-sharing network for multiple viewers.
“The generic pattern is that these pictures are borne out of a relationship,” said Lynch. “The girls trusted the pictures would stay with that party. Then the relationship dissolves and after that point the pictures travel.”
Beginning in September, the police will partner up with the Burrillville School Department to sponsor forums about the risks that come with such behavior, according to the chief. Ultimately, however, Lynch said the responsibility for prevention starts with parents.
“The reality is all of these pictures were taken at the homes of these kids,” he said. “Parents are the key element in having a candid conversation with these kids and saying, ‘You’ve got to think about what you’re doing.’”
Attorney General Peter Kilmartin’s Office has taken over the prosecution of the case, which almost certainly involves one of the state’s youngest-ever defendants brought up on child pornography charges.
“The investigation involved the initial interviews of 43 females, numerous follow-up interviews, the execution of multiple search warrants, forensic analysis of evidence seized, and subsequent confession and cooperation of the defendant and his parents,” Lynch said.
Lynch praised the work of lead investigator Detective Ryan Hughes and Detective Lt. Guy Riendeau for their work on the case. He said the alleged offender was identified as a result of forensic analysis of digital evidence and witnesses who were privy to the use of the Dropbox.
Lynch said there were “many points of frustration” in the investigation because the defendant allegedly used his computer skills in attempts to mask his activities involving the Dropbox.
Much of the initial information about the probe surfaced from an affidavit filed in Sixth District Court that police were required to submit to obtain a warrant to search the records of San Francisco-based Dropbox in attempts to learn who created the account and who was sharing files.
The affidavit, filed by Inspector Mike Bouchard, said the Dropbox in question contained multiple subfolders holding images of 43 different females who were identified by name or nickname.
Additionally, investigators found three different subfolders, including one labeled “requests,” which was used for uploading new images of students who were already identified on the site. Another was labeled for “random” sexually explicit content. Yet another, labeled “unknown,” was used for asking other users to match up unknown images with names of a “known, identifiable students,” according to the affidavit.
Police believe the Dropbox account was reactivated in late February, but students at Burrillville High School have told members of the media that similar activity was known to have taken place, off and on, for at least a couple of years.
The use of Dropbox by students at the high school is not an isolated or unique incident. In recent years, there have been numerous examples of similar behavior around the country involving Dropbox and other online platforms, including Snapchat, Kick and Facebook Messenger to upload and swap nude pictures of classmates.
While Lynch called the defendant “the sole proprietor” of the illicit Dropbox, he said the investigation is open. If police develop substantial evidence that suggests others played a role in creating the Dropbox, there could be additional arrests.