Warrant issued for man charged with child porn

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A summons to appear in court and an arrest warrant have been issued for two individuals who were indicted by a Delaware County grand jury last week.

Michael C. Blankenship, of 5456 State Route 521, Delaware, was indicted on five counts of pandering sexually oriented material involving a minor and three counts of illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material or performance, which are all second-degree felonies.

According to the indictment, Blankenship downloaded five pieces of child pornography between October 2014 and October 2015 and over the same period did “photograph … create, direct, produce or transfer any material or performance that shows the minor in a state of nudity.”

Friday’s indictment lists the names of the videos allegedly downloaded by Blankenship. The titles imply the videos depict children as young as toddlers and as old as 10 being victimized.

A warrant has been issued for Blankenship’s arrest. An arraignment has not yet been scheduled. Delaware County Common Pleas Judge David Gormley will preside over the case.

Also indicted was Kierstan L. Vest, of Columbus.

Vest was indicted on one charge of intimidation of an attorney, victim or witness in a criminal case or delinquent child action proceeding, which is a third-degree felony, and a charge of telecommunications harassment, a first-degree misdemeanor.

The indictment states that on May 25 Vest used a phone to “abuse, threaten or harass another person.” Prosecutors said the Genoa Township Police Department is handling the investigation but township police could not be reached for details of the case.

Vest was issued a summons to appear in court.

An arraignment for Vest has been scheduled for Aug. 18 at 9:30 a.m. in Delaware County Common Pleas Court. Common Pleas Judge Everett Krueger will preside over the case.

By Glenn Battishill

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Glenn Battishill can be reached at 740-413-0903 or on Twitter @BattishillDG.

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