No local children appear to be involved at this time

Crawford Alan Grimsley

Crawford Alan Grimsley, 52, of Lake Emory Drive in East Franklin, was arrested in Macon County last week after a witness indicated Grimsley was in possession of child pornography at his storage unit.

Grimsley was further charged with 10 counts of failing to register as a sex offender.

In 1989, when Grimsley was 33, he was tried and found guilty of two sex crimes in Florida – handling, fondling, or assaulting a child under the age of 16. The Florida sex offender registry indicates Grimsley was released, but required to register in accordance with Florida law.

“The earliest we can put him here is around July 2, and he would have had three days to register,” said Brian Welch, attorney for the Macon County Sheriff’s Office.

His last known address, according to both the national and Florida sex offender registry, was in Mobile, Ala, as of November 2005.

Alabama’s sex offender registry contains no record of Grimsley. There is no indication on the North Carolina registry that he has ever registered in North Carolina.

When arrested, Grimsley had a Gainesville, Fla., driver’s license in his possession.

“This is an ongoing investigation and determining exactly where he has been is something we will find out,” Welch said.

On July 14, an individual at the warehouse noticed that one of the units was open and had already been pilfered. Seeing that, the individual picked up a box of CDs and took them home. When he checked the CDs, however, he discovered the child pornography. He consulted with a friend who then advised that the information should be turned over to authorities.

The witness went to a local deputy’s home, according to the warrant, stating, “She was the only one he trusts to come to about the issue he had.”

After turning over the evidence, a detective reviewed the material and found three photographs of small children posed in sexually explicit matters and one child, around 10 years, engaging in sexual activities.

By the time investigators reached the warehouse, the unit had already been cleared out. The owner was able to offer information as to whom the unit was rented, and the witness identified Grimsley, and described the vehicle he drove.

When the witness saw Grimsley at the unit he was visibly “mad and acting nervous.”

In the evidence presented by the witness, none of the children photographed appear to be from Macon County.

“We have no reason to believe local children are involved, but that is one of the reasons we want to rush forensics evidence – to ensure that is the case,” Welch said.

Multiple items were confiscated from the home, a trailer and Grimsley’s truck. This included an array of photography equipment and recording devices, almost 200 CDs, DVDs, computers and a GPS.

According to the sheriff’s reports, when detained, Grimsley stated, “I have no problem with the failure to register. The other – I buy things at flea markets, I don’t know what they are.”

More charges could be pending, according to Welch.

“We’ve really just scratched the surface with this investigation,” Welch said.

In North Carolina, simple possession of pornography is a class H felony which could result in a minimum sentence of six months.

Grimsley was set to have a probable cause hearing in district court today.