A Platte City man facing four counts of promotion and possession of child pornography has been scheduled for trial and is seeking a pre-trial release from the Platte County Detention Center.
Ross Steele, 58, was charged in July 2019 and has been held in the detention center with no bond since. Last month, a jury trial before judge James Van Amburg was scheduled for March 2021 and Steele’s attorney has sought bond release. A hearing on that motion will be held next week.
According to court documents, the Missouri Highway Patrol’s Digital Forensic Investigating unit was conducting an online file sharing investigation for offenders sharing child pornography.
The investigator connected to an IP address later identified as belonging to Steele’s Platte City residence.
Upon a search of the home, a desktop computer and several external storage devices were recovered and hundreds of files appearing to be child pornography were located. The files included footage of young girls appearing to be eight to 12 years of age involved in sexual activity with adults.