Child Taken From Unsafe Home

A year-long investigation into the possession and distribution of child pornography by a Banning man led to the arrest of two people and the removal of an infant from their home Thursday.

Members of the Sexual Assault Felony Enforcement Task Force (SAFE), along with Banning police officers, served a search warrant at the home on the 400 block of Almond Way just after 7 a.m.

They arrested 26-year old Thomas William Edward Tatar on suspicion of distributing and possessing child pornography.

Police say the home was “in an unsafe condition…with numerous electrical wires running throughout the home posing a potential fire hazard, including one electrical wire that was running directly above the crib of a 6-month-old baby boy.”

Code enforcement officers also found dirty diapers inside the crib with the boy, and no running water in the home. The infant was taken into custody by Riverside County Child Protective Services.

The baby’s father, 27-year old Christopher Noone, was also arrested on suspicion of child endangerment. Authorities say the baby’s mother, who also lived at the home, was detained, and may be charged at a later date.

The relationship between Tatar and Noone is unclear, other than they both lived at the home.

Tatar is being held on $50,000 bail. Noone is being held on $35,000 bail at the Larry Smith Correctional Facility in Banning.