Local police arrested a Zionsville Fire Dept. engineer on a felony charge of child exploitation/possession of child pornography.
ZFD Engineer Daniel Stevens, 47, of Whitestown, was arrested May 25 and transported to the Boone County Jail after local police were tipped off by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that the user of a Twitter account was uploading child pornography to the social media platform.
Investigators from the Lebanon Police Dept., Whitestown Municipal Police Dept., Zionsville Police Dept. and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force served search warrants at Stevens’ address and Zionsville Fire Dept. Station 91 after receiving the alert. After a search of the locations, Stevens was arrested.
The investigation was conducted through the ICAC task force and its affiliated members. The investigation is ongoing.
“The Town of Zionsville is aware of the active police investigation involving Zionsville Fire Dept. Engineer Daniel Stevens and we are fully cooperating with police agencies in this investigation,” stated Amanda Vela, the town’s public information officer. “As of (May 25), Daniel Stevens has been placed on administrative leave and has no physical or electronic access to any Town of Zionsville facility, equipment or information while this case is being investigated. At the current time, this case is an open and ongoing investigation, and no further information will be shared.”
Additional information was not available at press time, as the Boone County Prosecutor’s Office was reviewing paperwork sent by law enforcement and preparing documents for court, Boone County Prosecuting Attorney Kent Eastwood said.
As of May 26, Stevens had not been released on bond.
According to ZFD, Stevens previously served the department as a firefighter/paramedic and served in the U.S. Marine Corps. Infantry from 1992 to 1996.
Stevens is the second man with Zionsville ties to be charged with possession of child pornography in recent weeks.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children also received a cyber tip May 12 reporting Steven Kasyjanski of Zionsville had used “a social media platform” to possess “child exploitative materials,” according to BCSO. Kasyjanski was a volunteer parent coach at the Zionsville Youth Soccer Association. Officials haven’t commented on whether the two cases are related. Current has reached out to the arresting agencies for comment but had not received a response as of press time.
