Former school custodian faces child porn charges
A former school custodian with the Morongo Unified School District, who was arrested last month for repeatedly sexually abusing a child over a period of several years and sharing visual depictions of the activity online, was indicted by a federal grand jury earlier this month, announced Bill Lewis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office and Andr Birotte, the United States Attorney for the Central District of California.
Matthew Frazer, 42, of Yucca Valley, was arrested at his place of employment on January 31, 2014 and charged in a federal criminal complaint that has been sealed by the court.
On Wednesday, February 12, 2014, a federal grand jury in Riverside returned an indictment charging Frazer with production of child pornography. The indictment alleges the defendant knowingly enticed a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing pornography.
According to the F.B.I., prior to his arrest in January, Frazer was employed as a custodian with the Morongo Unified School District. Evidence obtained during this investigation suggests that Frazer may have victimized additional minors not yet identified. Anyone who believes they may have information about this investigation or knowledge of possible victims is urged to contact the FBI.
This case was initiated in 2013, after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children provided to the FBI a series of pornographic images depicting a 4-6 year old female toddler being abused by a white male. For several months, investigators attempted to identify the male depicted in the images and identified Frazier as the suspect earlier this year.
If convicted of the charges in the indictment, Frazer faces a mandatory minimum sentence of fifteen years, and a statutory maximum sentence of thirty years in prison.
Frazer was arraigned on February 19 and entered a plea of not guilty. A trial date has been set for April 18, 2014.
