South Bend man charged with 7 counts of possession of child pornography

A South Bend man has been charged with seven counts of possession of child pornography, according to the St. Joseph County Prosecutor's Office.

The investigation revealed 51-year-old Gerald Nathan Wendt downloaded seven child pornography videos from a peer-to-peer network, according to the probable cause affidavit.

According to the St. Joseph County Cyber Crimes Unit who investigated the case, the videos were downloaded between March 2014 and May 2016, when Wendt's computer was seized.

When investigators spoke with Wendt he allegedly admitted to seeking out child pornography, downloading it and deleting it once he viewed it, according to the probable cause affidavit.

A forensic examination of his computer revealed he downloaded over 450 files with names consistent with child pornography and had attempted to download over 600 files with names consistent with child pornography, but was unsuccessful, according to the probable cause affidavit.

Wendt was arrested on February 8, 2017. He is being held on $35,000 bond.