A Camp Pendleton Marine was charged with multiple felony counts of sexual exploitation of children last month after allegedly sending explicit photos and videos of himself to middle school students and threatening them with rape, according to a partially redacted affidavit obtained by Military.com.
Pfc. Justin Ryder Simmons, 19, was arrested June 16 at Camp Pendleton, California. He was extradited to his home state of Colorado later that month where he was booked into a county jail on a $25,000 bond and then subsequently released, according to the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office in Colorado.
Simmons was charged with two counts of sexual exploitation of a child by enticement, possession of child sexual abuse material, and two counts of internet sexual exploitation of a child after he communicated with the middle schoolers through an online social media app. The sheriff's office said that he was later taken into custody in San Diego.
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The Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office investigators said they believe "there could be additional victims" of Simmons, according to a social media post Tuesday. The office said he was no longer in custody, and representatives for the San Diego County Sheriff's Office did not respond to Military.com's inquiry about his incarceration status by deadline Thursday.
According to the affidavit, Simmons allegedly sent sexually explicit pictures of himself, including some in uniform but nude from the waist down. The affidavit said that Simmons "knew or believed [the children] to be under fifteen years of age," and that there were two victims who were located in Colorado at the time of the contact.
"Based on how the girls were found and they were not known to him, I believe that there could be additional people that he was speaking to based on the types of conversations they were having," Jamie Wright, an investigator with the Internet Crimes Against Children Unit at the Arapahoe Sheriff's Office, told Military.com on Thursday. She said Simmons did not know the victims before he contacted them on social media and that the original report was received from their school resource officer.
A separate man included in the affidavit also allegedly attempted to sexually exploit the same children through the social media app, offering them vapes and drugs in exchange for sexual acts. He was also charged with sexual exploitation of a child, among other counts.
Investigators with the ICAC unit in Arapahoe County documented messages from Simmons and a victim starting in January, which included threats of rape and and that he would not "stop even if you're unconscious," according to the affidavit.
He corresponded with the children from Camp Pendleton but allegedly said he would meet at least one of the alleged victims in Colorado with the intent to have sex, the court record alleged, though he never did, according to Wright. The affidavit redacted the name of the minors, and Military.com does not identify the names of alleged sexual abuse victims.
"At the request of the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office, NCIS conducted basic checks and coordinated with the base magistrate and local law enforcement to facilitate the safe transfer of Simmons to civilian authorities," said Nikki Fleming, a spokesperson for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.
"NCIS did not conduct any independent investigative actions in this matter," Fleming said, but added that "NCIS remains committed to supporting our Marine Corps counterparts and law enforcement partners when called upon."
Simmons enlisted in the Marine Corps less than a year ago as a meteorology and oceanography specialist, according to Maj. Hector Infante, a spokesperson for the Marine Corps. He remains on active duty and was stationed at the School of Infantry-West at Camp Pendleton as a student.
"These allegations are currently being investigated by civilian law enforcement, and no further information is available at this time," Infante said when asked whether Simmons would be facing Uniform Code of Military Justice or other military legal actions such as separation or court-martial.
It was unclear whether Simmons had legal representation, and CBS News reported that he is due to appear in Arapahoe County Court early next month. A phone number posted by investigators on social media allegedly belonging to Simmons appeared disconnected when contacted.
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