White County man arrested for sexual exploitation of children

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  • Billy Rider
    Billy Rider
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The Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced Wednesday it had arrested a White County man Tuesday, Sept. 1, on child pornography charges.

A press statement from Georgia Bureau of Investigation said its Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit (CEACC) had charged Billy Joe Rider, 44, of Cleveland with six counts of sexual exploitation of children (possession of child pornography).

“An investigation into Rider’s internet activity by the GBI’s CEACC Unit began after a report was received from the National Center of Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) related to the online sharing of child pornography by Rider via the internet,” according to the GBI statement.

The investigation led to a search warrant at Rider’s residence and his arrest. He was taken to the White County Detention Center. According to the booking report from the White County Sheriff’s Office, he was released on a $15,000 bond on Wednesday, Sept. 2.

Assisting GBI in the search of Rider’s home was the GBI Cleveland Field Office, the Appalachian Regional Drug Enforcement Office and the Cleveland Police Department.

This investigation is part of the ongoing effort by the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, housed within the GBI’s Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit, to identify those involved in the child pornography trade. The ICAC Program, created by the U.S. Department of Justice, was developed in response to the increasing number of children and teenagers using the Internet, the proliferation of child pornography, and the heightened online activity by predators searching for unsupervised contact with underage victims.

Anyone with information about other cases of child exploitation is asked to contact the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit at 404-270-8870.