Washougal man accused of raping infant, toddler, distributing images
By Jack Heffernan, Columbian
county government and small cities reporter
Published: October 17, 2019, 6:18pm
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A Washougal man is suspected of raping an infant and toddler and distributing images of the assaults on the internet.
Stephan R. Price, 26, made an in-custody first appearance Thursday in Clark County Superior Court on suspicion of five counts of first-degree rape of a child, one count of first-degree child molestation, three counts of first-degree dealing in depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct, three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and four counts of first-degree possession of depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
Judge Jennifer Snider set Price’s bail at $1 million. Arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 31, court records show.
At 2 p.m. Wednesday, a detective with the Vancouver Police Department Digital Evidence Cybercrime Unit began investigating a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, according to an affidavit of probable cause. Operators of a video game community forum forwarded information to the center about a user posting child pornography with chat messages indicating he was actively abusing a child, the affidavit said.
The cybertip was listed as “priority 1,” a rare classification that typically indicates immediate danger to a child, according to a Vancouver Police Department news release.
“These graphic child sexual abuse videos had never before been seen by National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), which is a strong indicator that the abuse was recent and likely being conducted by the person uploading the content,” the news release reads.
In profanity-laced chat messages included in the affidavit, the user talks about assaulting the child, and sent a four-minute video of an infant being abused, according to the affidavit.
Using the information provided by the gaming forum and other electronic service providers, investigators applied for a search warrant. The warrant was executed around 9 p.m., and the infant was taken to a hospital for immediate medical attention and placed in protective custody, according to police.
After his arrest around 9 p.m. Wednesday, Price admitted that the account was his, and told police he had been producing and distributing child pornography as recently as three weeks ago, according to the affidavit.
“A search of electronic devices such as his cellular phone and laptop yielded a plethora of images of child pornography,” the affidavit reads.
Detectives believe there are likely additional victims. Anyone with information related to the case can call the Vancouver Police Department Tip Line at 360-487-7399.
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