An Iowa man faces up to 60 years in prison after he allegedly admitted during a lie detector test to a deputy that he viewed child pornography on the dark web, court records show.
Gregory Thomas Saxton, 35, of New Virginia, was charged in Clark County with 12 counts of purchasing or possessing a sexual performance image of a minor, each a Class D felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
Authorities claimed he was in possession of child pornography as well as artificial intelligence-generated nude images depicting several actual minors.
The case began on Nov. 10 when Saxton was undergoing a polygraph examination at the Polk County Sheriff’s Office as part of the application process to the Warren County Sheriff’s Office.
According to the search warrant application, Saxton allegedly admitted during interrogation that he used his cell phone to view child pornography on the dark web.
He said the incident occurred at his home in New Virginia, where he first discovered the materials and then allegedly conducted a search, the report states.
When asked about his age, the affidavit states he referred to “teenagers,” agreed that meant ages 13 to 17, and said he also encountered material involving younger children.
After the interview, investigators said Saxton signed a consent form allowing law enforcement to conduct a forensic examination of his personal cell phone.
On Nov. 20, an agent with the Iowa Bureau of Criminal Investigation applied for a search warrant in Polk County. The search warrant was approved the next day.
Saxton was arrested on February 19. He later posted $65,000 bail and was released pending further proceedings, court records show.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 3.
Nick El Hajj is a reporter for The Register. He can be contacted via: nelhajj@gannett.com. Follow him on X @nick_el_hajj.
This article originally appeared in The Des Moines Register: Iowa man arrested for admitting to child pornography during polygraph test