McHenry man charged with disseminating, possessing child pornography

A McHenry man faces charges alleging he distributed child pornography involving a child less than 13 years old, court records show.

Justin R. Griletz, 38, was charged last week with four felonies, the most serious of which involves the dissemination of a video in October, according to the complaint.

A Class X felony, the charge can carry a prison sentence of six to 30 years in prison.

Griletz also was charged with three counts of possessing child pornography, two involving videos of children under 13 years old and a third involving a video of a child under 18 years old.

The charges came after the National Center of Missing and Exploited Children provided the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office information in August that it received from the Internet Crimes Against Children data system pertaining to the possible possession of child pornography, the sheriff’s office said in a news release on Wednesday.

Members of the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office Investigations Division conducted a search early Thursday morning at Griletz home, 4805 William St. outside McHenry, and arrested Griletz, according to the release.

The investigation was ongoing and additional charges are expected, the sheriff’s office said.

Griletz remained in the McHenry County Jail as of Tuesday afternoon in lieu of a $300,000 bond, of which he would need to post 10% in order to be released.

His public defender filed a motion Friday seeking to have his bond reduced. That request will be heard by a judge Wednesday morning.