Safford teen jailed for child pornography

Contributed photo/Courtesy of GCSO: Rayden Scot Harwood, 18, is incarcerated in the Graham County Adult Detention Facility and charged with 12 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and possession of child pornography.

Bail set at $100,000

By Jon Johnson

[email protected]

SAFFORD – Special agents with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Douglas completed a search of a residence at 2040 S. Perry Place in Safford on August 14 and arrested Rayden Scot Harwood, 18, for possession and distribution of child pornography.

Harwood was booked into the Graham County Adult Detention Facility and the Graham County Prosecutor’s Office formally charged him with 12 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor. His bond was set at $100,000.

According to a report by HSI, Google initially reported an incident involving child pornography to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) on December 6, 2023. The information was then shared with the Arizona Internet Crimes Against Children, which passed it on to HSI Douglas and its agents to investigate the crime.

In April, researchers served Google with a subpoena seeking to disseminate user information and identify an individual by username. Google responded to the subpoena the same day, and Rayden Harwood was revealed.

Investigators then reviewed 36 files containing child abuse material that Harwood allegedly obtained. The material showed a variety of extreme child abuse acts, primarily on pre-pubescent children, some of whom were even infants. Some of the material also included bestiality.

Following the execution of the search warrant, Harwood was questioned and allegedly admitted to accessing child pornography via the dark web through an Onion browser and via the social media application Snapchat. He said he began viewing child pornography at the age of 15 and allegedly admitted to distributing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) to three separate individuals.

Evidence shows that officers seized two Motorola phones and a silver MacBook Air from the residence.

Sexual exploitation of a minor is a Class 2 felony, and under Arizona Revised Statutes, if the minor is under 15, each charge carries a maximum allowable sentence of 27 years in prison. However, in many cases like this one, a plea agreement is usually reached where the defendant pleads guilty to an amended charge of attempted sexual exploitation of a minor, which carries a lighter penalty structure.