Photo credit: Marion County Sheriff's Office
OCALA, Fla. - A Florida man is facing numerous charges of child pornography possession after more than 220,000 pornographic images – reportedly weighing over 2,600 pounds – were found inside his home, according to the Marion County Sheriff's Office.
MCSO said 72-year-old Paul Zittel was arrested last week and booked into jail on 25 counts of possession of child pornography. He is being held on a $250,000 bond.
In a Facebook post, MCSO said it received information in January about multiple files depicting child sexual abuse material (CSAM) being uploaded to the internet. The IP addresses connected to those files allegedly were assigned to Zittel.
Authorities conducted a search warrant at Zittel's home in Ocala, Florida, where other people live. Those residents told deputies that "Zittel would not allow others into his bedroom or office without personally escorting them."
In his bedroom, deputies found "countless printed photographs" – many of which allegedly depicted child pornography – and several stacks of boxes, a printer, computer, and digital storage device.