Palmetto State News

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) - South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced the arrest of Derek James Pettus, 22, of Camden, S.C., on 15 charges connected to the sexual exploitation of a minor. Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force investigators with the Camden Police Department made the arrest. Investigators with the Attorney General's Office, Kershaw County Sheriff's Office, Homeland Security Investigations, and U.S. Secret Service, all also members of the state's ICAC Task Force, assisted with this investigation.

Investigators received a CyberTipline report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) which led them to Pettus. Investigators state Pettus distributed and possessed files of child sexual abuse material. Pettus was arrested on April 18, 2024. He is charged with four counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, second degree (§16-15-405), a felony offense punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment on each count; and 11 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, third degree (§16-15-410), a felony offense punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment on each count. The case will be prosecuted by the Attorney General's Office.

Attorney General Wilson stressed all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law. He also highlighted the importance of using the term "child sexual abuse material" instead of "child pornography" to accurately reflect the nature of the crimes involved. Wilson mentioned, ""Pornography" can imply the child was a consenting participant." Globally, the term child pornography is being replaced by CSAM for this reason.