Man facing 40 counts of sexual exploitation of minor turns himself in, police say

By CNN Newsource

Published August 26, 2022 9:47 AM

By WLOS staff

ASHEVILLE, North Carolina (WLOS) — A man wanted on dozens of counts of child sex crimes turned himself in Thursday, Asheville police said.

Joseph David Ostler, 31, was charged with two counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and 38 counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor. He was booked into the Buncombe County Detention Facility with an $80,000 secured bond.

The investigation began in September 2021 and was the result of APD detectives with the Computer Crimes Unit following up on cyber tips received as members of the North Carolina Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

If you know of a child being abused in any way, please do not hesitate to contact the Asheville Police Department or your local law enforcement agency. You can anonymously share with APD by texting TIP2APD to 847411, or use the TIP2APD smartphone app. You can also share information by calling 828-252-1110.

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