Parsons man arrested after child pornography allegedly found on his phone | News, Sports, Jobs

Poling

PARSONS – A Parsons man was arrested this week after child pornography was allegedly found on his cellphone.

Joshua David Poling, 34, is charged with possession of child sexual abuse material, fewer than 50 images. He is being held at the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on $6,000 bail.

According to the criminal complaint written by Senior Trooper CD Harper of the West Virginia State Police, police received a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children on February 21, 2023. The tip stated that a juvenile reported that “A man who initially claimed to be 20 but then admitted to being 32 is sending me sexually explicit pictures and messages.” including photos of an allegedly underage girl.

The tip said the man's first name was Josh and he communicated via Instagram, the complaint states. The teen explained: “He constantly asked me for nude photos and I have proof and pictures of the messages he sent me. He was very cautious and did not show me what he looked like, tell me his last name or his exact location.”

Harper's investigation led him to Poling's residence in September 2023, according to the complaint. Poling told the officer he did not use an Instagram account “in years”, and that the last time he used the account “acted like it was hacked.” Poling pulled out his phone and showed the officer that Instagram was not installed on the device.

Harper asked about the phone “Garbage” and Poling said it only contained “deleted porn”, The complaint further states: “At this point, Mr. Poling seemed to be getting nervous.” Harper seized Poling's phone as evidence.

A report from the West Virginia State Police Forensics Laboratory states that Poling’s phone contained 34 images of “Child sexual abuse material”, so the complaint.