Suspect wanted on 108 counts of child sexual exploitation remains at large

Detectives with the Hall County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) have issued arrest warrants for a Hall County man who allegedly possessed and shared multiple child sexual abuse (CSAM) videos earlier this year.

Blake Lawrence Edwards, 32, who lived at a residence on Walnut Grove Way in northern Hall County, is wanted on 108 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor. Those charges include 106 counts of alleged possession of CSAM videos and two counts of posting videos on a peer-to-peer file-sharing platform, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.

According to the sheriff’s office, the videos were stored on two external hard drives found at Edwards’ home.

Detectives first became aware of Edwards’ online activities in March, when he allegedly shared sexually abusive material.

“They executed search warrants on the residence on May 14th and seized multiple electronic devices, including the two hard drives on which the videos were found,” said BJ Williams, public information officer for the Hall County Sheriff’s Office.

She says Edwards was not home when the warrants were executed and that there is no evidence the CSAM material was made locally.

Edwards is currently still at large. The sheriff’s office says he has ties to the Jacksonville, Florida area. Additional charges are possible pending the continued forensic processing of electronic devices seized from Edwards’ Hall County residence.

Edwards is 5 feet 7 inches tall and has blue eyes. Authorities released a photo of him but did not provide any other description.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts can contact Hall County Dispatch at 770-536-8812.