LENAWEE COUNTY, Mich. – A 24-year-old Adrian man is accused of receiving and possessing pornographic images of children including one graphic image of an apparent dead infant.
According to the FBI criminal complaint report, Sean Gossman admitted to searching for and downloading child pornography after one of his thumb drives was found by a child on Nov. 10 in Onsted, Mich. A family member of the child gave the thumb drive to Cambridge Township police. They determined it belonged to Gossman.
View: FBI's criminal complaint against Sean Gossman
What they found on the drive prompted the FBI investigation and search warrant.
The thumb drive was filled with 1,039 images of child pornography and 21 non-pornographic images of Gossman. According to the FBI's report, Gossman's thumb drive held 28 images of child pornography including bondage or torture, five child pornographic movies more than 5 minutes long, five movies -- one including child porn and bestiality -- less than 5 minutes long and 536 images of child erotica.
The FBI executed a search warrant in April at the trailer where Gossman had been living. Upon executing the search warrant at Gossman's home, FBI agents seized two laptop computers, several CDs and DVDs, and three more thumb drives.
One of the child pornographic images was of an infant with a bag over her head and a rope around her neck. The child appeared dead with the words "nepi-rape" written on her stomach. "Nepi-rape" is defined as "the rape of innocence," according to the FBI's complaint report.
Moreover, according to the complaint, Gossman told agents all of the child pornography images and movies belonged to him and him alone. He told them he started downloading child erotica and moved on to child porn images and movies.
FBI investigators also found "Tor Browser" on the thumb drive. Gossman apparently used the Tor Browser device to protect his online privacy so no one would find out about what websites he was visiting and what he was downloading from his computer IP address.
It's not clear if he had any part in the production of it or if he knew any of the children in the images and videos.
Gossman faces the charge of receipt and possession of child pornography. He appeared in court on Thursday and remains locked up until a bail hearing Monday.