Katie 
Douglas Eugene Saltsman, 40, of Sandy, Utah. [Photo credit: Salt Lake County Jail]
Charges were filed by the Utah Attorney General’s Office in 3rd District Court on December 9th, but it wasn't until the 18th that 40 year old Douglas Eugene Saltsman was booked into custody at the Salt Lake County Jail. His bond has been set at $250,000.
“I found thousands of images and videos of child pornography. Ten images and videos containing child pornography are listed in counts I through X above,” Special Agent Sete Aulai, a member of the State Attorney General's Office with the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force stated in the probable cause statement.
A total of 13,020 files were submitted through the law enforcement portal of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children where 279 of those files were determined to depict known identified child victims.
The investigation into Saltsman, founder and CEO of a blockchain and cryptocurrency company named Saltmine.io, began in May after the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force discovered a compilation video depicting the abuse of young girls entitled "Kids porno" being shared online.
On August 20th, law enforcement showed up to Saltsman's residence with a search warrant. It is reported that he returned home while they were in the midst of their search and after being advised of his Miranda rights, refused to be interviewed by authorities.
During that search, computers and SD cards were confiscated. Authorities also reported discovering “a clandestine drug lab of some sort set up in a downstairs bedroom closet,” according to charging documents. The Sandy Fire Department and hazmat team were called to make sure that there was no threat to public safety.
Saltsman, who is facing 10 second degree felony charges of sexual exploitation of a minor, made his first appearance in court last Friday, the 20th, via video feed.
His attorney requested a release evaluation to determine whether or not Saltsman could be released before trial. A review of the release evaluation was scheduled for January 7th as it would not be completed by the December 24th pretrial conference.
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