A Palmetto man sent his computer in for repair. What employees found got him arrested

When a 71-year-old man was having issues with his computer, he sent it to Ohio to have a data recovery firm look into fixing his hard drive.

What they found made them alert authorities.

The Bradenton Police Department announced Friday that Dale Trotman, of Palmetto, was arrested Thursday for possession of child porn.

Detectives say Ohio-based Secure Data called the local police department when employees discovered the files on June 14. Trotman had shipped them his hard drive for a diagnostic test, according to an arrest report. There were “a couple thousand” pictures of child porn on the device.

Ohio police shipped the drive to the Palmetto Police Department, which received the package June 18. After obtaining a search warrant, the Bradenton Police Department Criminal Investigations Section executed a search of Trotman’s home Thursday.

In an interview, Trotman reportedly told deputies that he has used internet accounts to upload, download and view child pornography.

Trotman was charged with 20 counts of possession of sexual performance of a child and is being held at the Manatee County Jail without bond.

The investigation is ongoing and is in partnership with the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force and the Palmetto Police Department. Anyone with information regarding the case is asked to call (941) 932-9380 or Manatee County Crime Stoppers at 1-866-634-8477.