Marco Cruz

A West Chicago man is being held in DuPage County Jail on child pornography charges.

Marco Cruz, 39, a resident of the 700 block of Lyman Street appeared at First Appearance Court on Wednesday, May 29 charged with five counts of child pornography – reproduce or distribute – victim under 13, a Class X felony.

Class X felonies are punishable by 6 to 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $25,000.

DuPage County Circuit Court Judge Joshua Dieden granted the state’s motion to deny pre-trial release for Cruz.

Authorities with the West Chicago Police Department were made aware of the possible possession and dissemination of child pornography by a user with the name KingOfKings3800 on the Kik app.

Following an investigation, authorities traced the username to an email and IP address allegedly registered to Cruz. On Tuesday, May 28, West Chicago police conducted a traffic stop on Cruz, during which officers seized Cruz’s cell phone.

It is alleged that authorities found that in the past two days, Cruz had disseminated more than 10 videos of child pornography using Kik. Cruz had stored hundreds of videos and images of child pornography on his cell phone, some with children who appeared to be as young as 2 to 7 years old, police said. He had also disseminated child pornography using the Telegram app, according to police.

“The allegation that Mr. Cruz was not only in possession of child pornography but also shared pornographic imaged depicting children with others is very disturbing,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said. “As I have said many times in the past, every image of child pornography represents yet another innocent victim of child pornography and my office will not hesitate in filing charges against anyone involved in such behavior. I thank the West Chicago Police Department for their work on this case ad for their continued efforts in protecting our children from child pornographers.”

“Offenders who believe that disseminating child pornography is harmless, because they didn’t create it, are perpetuating a myth and encouraging and illegal act that almost guarantees the future victimization of innocent children,” West Chicago Chief of Police Colin Fleury said. “West Chicago Police Department personnel will not only use every available resource to investigate these crimes to curb this horrendous offense, but we will also continue to work tirelessly and cooperatively with State’s Attorney Bob Berlin and his office to seek justice.”

Cruz’s next court appearance is scheduled for June 25, for arraignment in front of Judge Brian Telander.