Security guard facing child porn charges, small camera found in company car: affidavit

Apartment security guard charged with child porn

FOX 13's Aaron Mesmer explains why an apartment security guard is facing child porn charges after a small camera was found inside his car.

TAMPA - A Signal Security guard was arrested on June 24 and charged with 10 counts of possession of child pornography.

According to the arrest affidavit, a Signal Security car was taken to a collision center. While it was there, a company manager noticed a small camera in the vehicle and checked the memory card on the device.

The backstory:

Detectives wrote that the manager found several explicit videos with children in them and called the police. The manager told investigators the car was driven by Michael Wilson, an employee at Signal.

It's unclear if the children are local, but investigators believe they were recorded with the camera, the affidavit said. Detectives indicated Wilson appeared in one of the videos.

In a statement to FOX 13, Tampa Police wrote: "The suspect, Michael Wilson, an employee of the business, was identified and taken into custody without incident. He has been charged with 10 counts of possession of child pornography. Additional charges are pending further forensic review."

According to court documents, Wilson worked security at the Brandywine Apartments in Tampa. The affidavit indicated officers were told by a manager that Wilson was, "spending several hours at a time in the bathroom where children are known to congregate."

Signal Security declined to comment. Brandywine Apartments couldn't be reached for comment.

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News of the case was stomach-turning for Clara Reynolds, President and CEO of the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay.

What they're saying:

"Whether it's a security guard or somebody that is a sworn officer, that is the person of trust. And so we encourage our children to reach out to these trusted adults for help and support. And so when somebody in a position like that violates that trust, it can have a ripple effect for children across our community and for their parents as well."

Reynolds said this kind of victimization can be traumatic for the children involved.

"It can, unfortunately, be life-changing for them. We all know in the work that we do that trauma, untreated, doesn't go away," she told FOX 13, adding that it's important for parents in the complex to talk with their kids. "You can start with something as simple as, you know, how did this person make you feel? Did you ever get a niggling in your belly that made you feel uncomfortable? Did you see anything? Did you hear anything?"

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