Newark man arrested, charged with possession and dissemination of child pornography

A Newark man has been arrested on charges of possession and dissemination of child pornography after an investigation into a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, according to a news statement from the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office.

Michael Wicklatz, 45, of the 14000 block of Lisbon Road, was arrested on charges of four counts of child pornography, two Class X felony charges for dissemination and two Class 2 felony charges for possession, in the wake of the investigation that began in June. Charges were approved by the Kendall County State’s Attorney’s Office.

On June 11, Kendall County sheriff’s detectives received “information based on a cybertip” from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, that an online user was disseminating child pornography,” the statement reads.

“Detectives initiated a criminal investigation into the NCMEC tip,” The statement reads. “During the investigation, numerous subpoenas were obtained to determine the identity of the user.”

Sheriff’s detectives, assisted by detectives from the Yorkville Police Department, Plano Police Department and the Illinois Attorney General’s Office’s High Tech Crime Bureau, executed a search warrant Oct. 19 as a result of the investigation.

Wicklatz was taken into custody without incident and is being held at the Kendall County Jail in Yorkville. Wicklatz’s bond was set at $100,000.