Bradenton man charged with possessing child pornography

A 43-year-old Bradenton man is facing three counts of child pornography and one count of tampering with evidence after Manatee County deputies found child porn on his phone, according to the arrest report.

Deputies say the investigation of Walter Huddleston began in May after tips were received from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

By May 12, detectives were able to track Huddleson’s activities back to him, according to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.

Detectives met with Huddleston on May 26 and saw images on his phone, which were immediately seized for evidence. An ensuing forensic investigation of the phone revealed several videos of young girls no older than 8 years old and as young as 1, being sexually abused by an adult female, the sheriff’s office said.

Detectives later found text messages between Huddleston and a female on another phone obtained by Huddleston about exchanging the videos. In the texts, Huddleston admits he had deleted much more than law enforcement found, the sheriff’s office said.

The woman, only identified as “Morgan,” then began to panic and asked if law enforcement knew about her, to which Huddleston tried to assure her that they did not.

Deputies say Huddleston initially tried to claim his phone must have been hacked but after being presented with the text evidence, he admitted to downloading and sending the videos to the female.

Huddleston was arrested June 30 on the charges and is being held without bond. He also is wanted in Texas on charges of promotion of child pornography. The investigation continues into the woman who accepted the videos from Huddleston.