Kik moderator helps Fort Myers police find man accused of sharing child porn

Monday night WINK News is learning more about what led Anthony Angelo, 22, to get arrested for possessing and sending child porn. After almost a year-long investigation, a tip about Angelo came online, but who sent it is what’s shocking.

Kik, a popular messaging app, is used by many because it’s viewed as a more secure way to send messages users don’t want to be leaked to the world.

“It is safer than texting,” safety and security specialist Rich Kolko said.

But because it’s safer doesn’t mean that leak-proof.

A company known as MediaLab, owned and operated by Kik, is what tipped off the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to Angelo. App moderators told authorities that Angelo might be distributing child pornography on the app.

“Over the years, the apps have become much more engaged in helping protect children,” Kolko said. “The app developers are not sitting there going through your messages, which is exactly what they promised you they’re not going to do. But there is technology to help pick up when these images are transmitted, which may have child exploitation.”

That tip from app moderators proved accurate, leading to FMPD executing a search warrant on Angelo’s Kik account. Later, FMPD found Angelo had sent 27 files of child pornography to another user.

The details of some of the videos are so graphic we won’t go into the details. Although the videos do involve children that are so young, they’d be considered toddlers.

Angelo’s account was found to have 39 videos on it.

When officers showed up to Angelo’s Fort Myers apartment, Angelo initially said he couldn’t remember having a Kik but quickly confessed to having an account. Eight more child pornography videos were found on Angelo’s iPhone after getting searched by authorities.

Angelo is being charged with ten counts of possession of sexual performance by a child and two counts of transmission of child pornography.

Angelo turned himself in on May 3 and is being held in the Lee County Jail.