19-year-old Diego Arteaga-Gurrola turned himself into the Boulder County Jail on Sunday in response to an arrest warrant for six counts of sexual exploitation of a child. He has been released on a $50,000 personal recognizance bond with pre-trial supervision and no contact with anyone under the age of 18. The bond conditions require Arteaga-Gurrola to stay in the state of Colorado. He appeared in the Boulder County Courthouse at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, August 27.
The arrest warrant for Arteaga-Gurrola was related to “possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) depicting a child under the age of 12 years being subjected to sexual intercourse or intrusion.” The investigation started with information from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) that was shared with the Colorado Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force. When the ICAC determined the suspect was possibly in Boulder County, the information was forwarded to the Boulder County Digital Forensics Lab (DCDFL), an ICAC Task Force affiliate.
Investigators at the DCDFL identified Arteaga-Gurrola as the suspect after court orders on electronic service providers. A search warrant was obtained and conducted on the suspect’s residence in the 700 block of Baker Street by detectives from the City of Longmont, Boulder County, and the Longmont SWAT team. Multiple electronic devices were seized and law enforcement had probable cause to obtain an arrest warrant for possession and distribution of CSAM.
“Since the Boulder County Digital Forensics Lab started working these investigations, three things have been made clear,” Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty said. “First, there are individuals distributing and using child sexual abuse material in every community; so, we are fortunate to have this outstanding team pursuing these cases in Boulder County. Second, these cases involve actual victims because of what the videos depict. Finally, in this jurisdiction, the investigators and prosecutors will work hard to search out offenders, protect victims, and fight for justice.”
Arteaga-Gurrola is being charged with two counts of distribution, a class 3 extraordinary risk felony, and four counts of possession, a Class 4 Extraordinary Risk Felony.
The Boulder County Digital Forensics Lab, Longmont Department of Public Safety, Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, Boulder County District Attorney’s Office, and Boulder Police Department all assisted in the investigation.
