CITIZEN STAFF REPORT

WILLIAMSON, W.Va. — West Virginia State Police arrested a Williamson man this week after investigators said he transmitted child sexual abuse material through a Facebook account.

Troopers S. P. Bowling and T. G. Kania executed a search warrant Dec. 10 at the Vinson Street residence of Jeffrey Brian Ball, 61, according to a criminal complaint filed in Mingo County Magistrate Court. The warrant stemmed from a report to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s CyberTipline, which said Meta Platforms, Facebook’s parent company, had identified transmissions originating from an account linked to Ball.

During the search, officers seized several cellphones from a bedroom occupied by Ball, court records show. Investigators said the devices contained communications associated with the Facebook account, personal identifiers including photographs of Ball, financial transaction records, user account information and files containing child sexual abuse material.

While reviewing one of the devices, a Motorola G Play cellphone, officers identified 73 videos they labeled as suspected child pornography, according to court documents. Investigators later determined that the total number of images recovered exceeded 300.

Ball was arraigned in Mingo County Magistrate Court and charged with distributing or exhibiting visual depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct, including computer-generated images.

Court records indicate the charges involve more than 300 images and include allegations involving violence and bestiality.

He remains incarcerated at the Southwestern Regional Jail on a $20,000 cash bond.