Palmetto State News

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced the arrest of Trey Cameron Leonard, 22, of Sugar Hill, GA, on two charges connected to the sexual exploitation of a minor. Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force investigators with the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office made the arrest.

Investigators state Leonard distributed files of child sexual abuse material and blackmailed a minor victim. Leonard was arrested on June 10, 2024. He is charged with one count of sexual exploitation of a minor, second degree (§16-15-405), a felony offense punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment, and one count of blackmail (§16-17-640), a felony offense punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment.

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.

Child sexual abuse material, or CSAM, is considered a more accurate reflection of the material involved in these crimes. "Pornography" can imply the child was a consenting participant. Globally, the term child pornography is being replaced by CSAM for this reason.