Man pleads not guilty to alleged possession of matter depicting child sexually
A Desert Hot Springs man accused of possessing and disseminating child sex-abuse material on the internet pleaded not guilty to a felony charge.
Pedro Alfredo Elizalde was charged with one felony count of possessing images depicting a minor under 12 years old in a sexual act, according to court records.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge at the Larson Justice Center in Indio on Tuesday morning.
Police detectives and the Riverside County District Attorney's Office Child Exploitation Team investigated the alleged online exploitation of children by a suspect in Desert Hot Springs, according to Christopher Saucier of the Desert Hot Springs Police Department.
Saucier said that detectives authored various search warrants and identified Elizalde as the suspect.
He was arrested in Banning the morning of Oct. 11, 2022, and was taken back to his residence in Desert Hot Springs, where detectives executed a search warrant, according to Saucier.
Elizalde was subsequently booked into the John J. Benoit Detention Center in Indio, but posted $300,000 bail.
Anyone with information about the case was asked to contact the police department at 760-329-2904 or the Valley Crime Stoppers anonymously at 760-341-7867 (STOP).
