Two Citrus Heights men among 12 arrested after ‘horrendous’ child porn investigation

By Mike Hazlip—
The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office on Halloween announced 12 arrests in an operation dubbed “Operation Monster Mash” targeting individuals suspected of creating and distributing child sexual abuse material.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Oct. 31, the Sheriff’s office identified two of the 12 men as being from Citrus Heights. Multiple law enforcement agencies coordinated efforts in the operation, including the Citrus Heights Police Department.

Citrus Heights residents Josh Steven Sevilla, 40, and 38-year-old Christopher Kent Bowman were arrested in the operation, according to Sacramento County Sheriff’s Sgt. Brandon Gayman who supervised the task force.

Sevilla faces additional charges of a “hands-on” offense with a minor, the Sheriff’s Office said. He was charged with 12 counts of lewd acts with a minor by force or fear, eight counts of lewd acts with a minor under the age of 14, and possession of child pornography, according to the release.

“It’s been a big issue,” Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper said in a live-streamed press conference Tuesday adding that there are online chat clubs where images are traded and shared. “What’s disturbing in the past few years is that people are more hands-on. Not just looking at the material but going hands-on and molesting someone.”

The Sheriff’s Office called the sexual material “horrendous,” counting the amount of images in the “tens of thousands.” The ages of the victims ranged from infants and toddlers up to juveniles, authorities said. One suspect was found to have over 5TB of sexually explicit material depicting children, the release said.

The Sentinel previously reported police activity at a Citrus Heights residence in the 8400 block of Pitalo Way in a Sept. 27 report. Witnesses reported seeing FBI and Sacramento County Sheriff’s vehicles at the residence on the morning of Sept. 26. An officer at the scene told The Sentinel that the agencies were serving a warrant in connection with an ongoing investigation but could not give any details.

Citrus Heights Police told The Sentinel at the time that the operation involved the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force but could not give any further details. A van observed at the scene had an ICAC logo on the side.

From September: Internet crimes task force serves warrant at Citrus Heights home

The other men named as suspects in Operation Monster Mash are Gary Paul Gauthier, 63, of Sacramento; Michael Bradford Stealey, 45, of Folsom, Matthew Todd Berg, 50, of Roseville; Robert Owen Gunwall, 35, of Roseville; James Stanley Skaggs, 60, of Isleton; Joshua Alan Akins, 35, of Lodi, and Santos Abraham Sanchez, 35, of Sacramento. Suspects Joseph John Deangelis, 40, Thomas Rider Plowright, 35, and Marc Kevin Floresca, 32, are facing additional charges.

The majority of suspects have had no previous contact with law enforcement, Cooper said, raising concerns over what he says is the proliferation of sexually explicit images with children on various internet platforms and social media.

According to sacvalleyhitech.com, the task force was formed in the mid-1990s and focuses on identity theft, internet crimes against children, and digital forensics. The task force is made up of personnel and investigators from the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, San Joaquin County Sheriff, the Placer County District Attorney’s Office, and multiple police departments in the region.

“The Sacramento Valley Hi-Tech Crimes Task Force is committed to protecting our children and our communities,” the release said. “ICAC Detectives will continue to deploy proactive investigative techniques to identify suspects who are downloading and sharing CSAM and participating in the continual physical and mental abuse of children.